SUNDAY: April 25, 2021: FIVE starters for three wins and two placings.
Brad Widdup could hardly have hoped for a better Anzac weekend!
Hawkesbury’s leading trainer lifted his current season’s tally to 24, courtesy of Kembla Grange victories yesterday with Outlook and Calgary King and a successful return by Nags To Riches at Gosford today.
Brad took four horses to Kembla Grange – and all collected prizemoney cheques.
Along with Outlook ($2.70 favorite) and Calgary King ($7), Mareeba ($2.05 favorite) and Queen Bellissimo ($2.40 favorite) finished third in their respective races.
Nags To Riches put the icing on Brad’s weekend cake by leading throughout at Gosford in the Benchmark 64 Handicap (1100m) against her own sex, making it two wins from only three starts.
“It was great to get back amongst the winners,” Brad said this evening on his way home from Gosford.
“All our horses performed well. Though Mareeba and Queen Bellissimo were beaten, I’m sure there is further improvement in them.
“Outlook did a terrific job to fight back and win, and looks a stayer of the future.
“Now that she has broken through over 1600m, I want to get more racing into her to help her mature.
“Calgary King also was good leading throughout over 1400m, and the blinkers going on this preparation no doubt has helped.
“He has come back a more mature horse.”’
Brad was understandably pleased with Written Tycoon filly Nags To Riches, who was too nippy for her rivals on resumption.
A debut winner on her home track last July, Nags To Riches had an enforced break after a first-up close second at Warwick Farm in November.
“She was walking sideways the next morning as though she had been punched, and an examination revealed she had fluid outside the lungs,” Brad explained.
“Nags To Riches is raced by a good bunch of owners including Lustre Lodge Thoroughbreds and Greenhaven Park Stud, and it was very satisfying to see her resume so well.”
. Whilst Brad narrowly missed out on a Group 1 breakthrough with Icebath in the $3m Doncaster Mile at Royal Randwick a fortnight ago, he is keen to chase further black type with another four of his “girls” at Hawkesbury’s stand-alone meeting on Saturday.
He intends nominating Akari for the $175,000 Group 3 Killahy Equine Crown (1300m) for fillies and mares, Calgary Queen (raced in the same interests as Kembla winner Calgary King by Chinese-based Zhongli Thoroughbreds) for the $200,000 Group 3 Blacktown Workers Club Group Hawkesbury Guineas (1400m) for three-year-olds, and Adelong and Switched for the $140,000 Listed XXXX Gold Hawkesbury Rush (1100m) for sprinters.