Craig Kerry
Premier jockey James McDonald hopes for a fairer, drying track at Eagle Farm on Saturday for Fangirl as he chases a potentially record-breaking group 1 victory on the $10.7 million-earner in the twilight of her career.
McDonald sits on 15 Australian group 1 wins this season, one short of Malcolm Johnston’s 1979-80 record of 16 – a mark he has threatened multiple times.
The Sydney-based champion, who surpassed Damien Oliver’s Australasian record of 129 career group 1s this season, has the chance to equal or break Johnston’s benchmark with rides on Chris Waller-trained Providence ($5.50) in the Queensland Derby (2400m) then Fangirl ($8) in the Kingsford Smith Cup (1300m).
Fangirl has already given McDonald memorable moments on the track, including three group 1s across eight wins together. However, she has not run a place in five heavy track attempts, putting her in doubt for Saturday’s race. Eagle Farm was upgraded to a soft 7 late on Friday and McDonald was hopeful it would continue to improve for the seven-year-old, which has four wins and two placings on soft going.
“As she’s gotten older she doesn’t mind getting her toe into the track, so if it gets into the slow range, it will be fine,” said McDonald, who was not overly concerned about the draw in 16 for the backmarker.
“She’s one-dimensional really. You know where she will be and hopefully she can finish strong.
“She’s a high-calibre galloper, and it’s good to have Jimmysstar, Fangirl and the like up in Queensland because normally they’d be out spelling by now.”
Fangirl had surgery to remove a bone chip in a fetlock, delaying her autumn return until the All Aged Stakes at Randwick on April 18 when she finished eighth. Waller has said every run this preparation could be Fangirl’s last before she heads to the broodmare barn, and McDonald said he hoped for a fitting farewell.
“She’s been a great horse for us and given us great highlights,” he said. “The King Charles springs to memory, and she’s been a fantastic servant for sure.
“[In the All Aged] it was a really up-and-in sort of track and very biased, and she basically had no hope from where she was and where she was drawn. She only got beaten two and a half lengths, so she was good.”
Providence had drawn well in eight and was equal favourite for the Derby after closing off well for a 1.4 lengths third in the Rough Habit Plate (2000m) on a soft 7 last start.
“He’s had a great preparation,” McDonald said.
“His run was fantastic the other day after covering ground, and he sets up really well here in what is an even race.”
McDonald will miss next Saturday’s racing because of suspension but said he will be back for the June 13 Eagle Farm meeting, where he will ride in the group 1 JJ Atkins. If unsuccessful on Saturday, that will be his last chance at Johnston’s record before heading to England for the Royal Ascot carnival.
“One foot in front of the other,” he said of the record.
“But it would be nice to just give their horses a good chance and hopefully they are in the money.”
Grey mudlark ready for late run
Tuncurry trainer Terry Evans doesn’t subscribe to the racing superstition of greys loving wet tracks, even though his stable favourite Sir Ravanelli can add weight to the myth.
However, Evans believes greys often have soft feet, and the problems that come with them, as is the case with his eight-year-old racing in the last at Rosehill on Saturday.
Sir Ravanelli is second-up after almost a year off the scene and will get conditions to suit on Saturday after Rosehill received more than 67mm this week. Australian Turf Club’s general manager of racecourses, Michael Wood, said on Friday “we’ll race in the heavy range all day” but the meeting was not in doubt, with clouds clearing.
In nine starts on heavy tracks, Sir Ravanelli has four wins and three seconds. Evans said Sir Ravanelli’s long break before resuming at Gosford on May 9 was purely waiting for wet tracks.
“He’s had corns in his feet and that’s his main issue, why he doesn’t like the hard tracks, so we race him in bar shoes, just to take the pressure off,” Evans said.
“And because he’s a grey horse, most of them have got soft feet, so you’ve just got to maintain them. He’s had soft feet forever, since we bought him from New Zealand.”
The $90,000 buy has won almost $400,000, including a lone city victory at Newcastle in May 2024 and the Country Championships heat at Tuncurry in 2023. He gets his chance to break an 18-month drought in the benchmark 78 handicap (1200m) on Saturday with Andrew Gibbons aboard.
“He’s run some terrific races in town and he’s been a good horse for us,” Evans said of the $31 (TAB) hope.
“He should have won a couple in town by now. He hasn’t been beaten too far a few times, against good horses. One of his best runs, Nash Rawiller rode him at Canterbury one day and a stride past the post he was in front.
“He’s definitely not up to the top grade, but he’s just given us a lot of fun.
“We can’t place him in the country because his rating has been too high. We’d like to get him up to Grafton for the carnival, all going well, in July. We’d love to get him into the Ramornie.
“It’s a tough race on Saturday. I don’t expect him to win, but he’ll run good. There’s some good horses in there, but the wet track brings us into contention.”
In his early years, Evans was sandboy to Balmain Tigers great Keith Barnes before going on to play lower grade rugby league for Balmain. He has been training thoroughbreds for 30 years, starting at Wyong, then Gosford before moving 17 years ago to Rainbow Flat, where he has 13 in work.
