Camilleri set for a double shot at Group 1 glory
Chicken king John Camilleri is a multi-millionaire accustomed to equine success, having bred a handy one named Winx (Street Cry) at one point, but he’s hoping to win two Group 1s as a battling underdog against a pair of raging favourites on Saturday.
At Caulfield, Camilleri will take on exciting $1.80 chance Apocalyptic (Extreme Choice) with a filly he bred in Britain in Chateau Eze (Frankel) in the Thousand Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m).
And at Randwick, Camilleri’s Fairway Thoroughbreds’ slot will deploy Lady Shenandoah (Snitzel) in The Everest (Gr 1, 1200m), as she and 11 others seek to somehow overcome Hong Kong star Ka Ying Rising (Shamexpress), who’s drifted to as much as $1.75 for the world’s richest turf race.
Third-starter Chateau Eze is on the sixth line of betting at $15, and Lady Shenandoah on the fifth at $13.
At the risk of stating the obvious, Camilleri says Apocalyptic, winner of her past three from four capped by the Flight Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m), and the 14-from-16 Ka Ying Rising will be “incredibly hard to beat”.
But, much like many an owner who came up against Winx, Camilleri will be out to enjoy the occasion, and won’t abandon the notion that anything can happen in a horse race.
“I feel absolutely fine on both fronts, because it’s a privilege to have a runner in these big races,” Camilleri told ANZ News.
“So I’ve got no problem whatsoever. You can’t run and hide and avoid these good horses, and it’s just great to be a part of it.”
With his triple Group 1 winner Sunshine In Paris (Invader) having been retired injured in August and covered by Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj) soon before his death at Coolmore Stud, Camilleri will be hoping Chateau Eze can fill the void.
She’s the product of a breeding project in which Camilleri sent four mares to Frankel (Galileo) in Britain, to each bring back a foal while carrying another. In what many breeders would see as a bonanza, Camilleri reports that project has produced an overwhelming majority of fillies.
“You’re always happy with fillies, because you’ve got some residual value there,” he said, “but as long as they come out the right way, you’re happy either way.”
Chateau Eze’s dam is the unraced Antibes (Lonhro). She’s an eight-year-old daughter of the Fairway-bred A Time For Julia (Redoute’s Choice) – a dual stakes winner who Camilleri sent to Japan to create Listed winning filly As Time Goes By (Deep Impact).
“Antibes was with Anthony and Sam Freedman and she showed a little ability, but she had some stifle issues so we retired her,” Camilleri said of Antibes, who’s second southern-timed visit to Frankel – standing at Juddmonte Stud for £350,000 ($A716,000) has now yielded a yearling colt.
“I liked the mating, and secondly, you don’t get many opportunities to go to a world class stallion. They’re often not available.”
The mating has given Chateau Eze a duplication of Danehill (Danzig) in the most optimal gender-balanced manner, at 3f x 4m via Frankel’s dam Kind and Antibes’ damsire Redoute’s Choice. Mr. Prospector (Raise A Native) is at 5m x 5m, 5m through Miswaki, Straight Strike and Jade Hunter.
Born on August 6, Chateau Eze was sent by Camilleri to Mark Walker at his Cranbourne base, as one of a minority of horses the New Zealander trains outside of the Te Akau operation.
“Te Akau have been good supporters of mine at the sales, and I have a very high regard for Mark as a trainer,” Camilleri said.
After two trials, Chateau Eze had her turn at odds-on when she debuted with an easy win in a 1212-metre Benalla three-year-old fillies’ maiden on September 2.
Stepped up to black type in Caulfield’s Jim Moloney Stakes (Listed, 1400m), she made good ground for a 0.75-length second at $9 behind Yum (Ghaiyyath). Bookmakers now have Yum longer than Chateau Eze for the Thousand Guineas, at $26.
“She’s only had two starts for a win and a second at stakes level, so her performance to date has been exceptional,” Camilleri said of Chateau Eze. “Mark and [assistant trainer] Ben Gleeson are very happy with her, so hopefully she runs well.
“It’s a Group 1, it’s going to be a hard race – they’re all hard to win. But Michael Freedman’s filly, Apocalyptic, seems an absolute stand-out. No doubt she’s the one to beat. She’s probably got an edge over the Melbourne fillies.”
Among the other three mares Camilleri sent to Frankel was the Fairway-bred Group 3-winner Fireworks (Snitzel), dam of stakes victor Millane (Zoustar). Fireworks was in fact covered by the great stallion three times, producing the Michael Freedman-trained Magenta Skies – a Newcastle maiden winner last month before running seventh in the Flight Stakes – plus two-year-old filly Beachside and a yearling colt.
Camilleri was left looking for a runner for Fairway’s Everest slot after the retirement of Sunshine In Paris, who ran a fine 1.54-length fifth in last year’s edition. He negotiated an superb replacement in the Chris Waller-trained, Hermitage Thoroughbreds-owned Lady Shenandoah.
The four-year-old mare was a star of last season, going unbeaten in five starts including three Group 1s in the Flight Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m), the Surround Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m) and the Coolmore Classic (Gr 1, 1500m). She still missed the Australian Champion 3YO Filly title, but only due to the presence of another triple Group 1 winner of the last season, Treasurethe Moment (Alabama Express).
Switched to shorter trips in this Everest campaign, Lady Shenandoah has blotted her copybook somewhat – similar to, but not as dramatically as, Treasurethe Moment.
Lady Shenandoah resumed with a 0.1-length second as a $2.60 favourite to Headwall (Dream Ahead) in Randwick’s Concorde Stakes (Gr 3, 1000m), but would have won had jockey James McDonald found clear running earlier.
The mare was then sent out a $2.35 favourite in Moonee Valley’s Manikato Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) but managed only fourth, 2.7 lengths off winner Charm Stone (I Am Invincible). McDonald had more excuses, however, with the mare trapped wide and back from gate ten and buffeted about in a roughly run race, before making decent ground in the short straight.
“It was a forget run,” Camilleri said. “She drew badly, it was a messy race, she got bumped, nothing went right for her. It was always going to be sticky from that wide gate. You wouldn’t think she’d find that much trouble but she did, and she ran a gallant fourth.
“In my mind I’ve put a line through it, and I have a feeling she’ll really show her true colours on Saturday.”
But with the world’s highest rated sprinter in the field, will Lady Shenandoah and the other 11 be running for second place?
“Obviously Ka Ying Rising will be very hard to beat,” Camilleri said.
“But Lady Shenandoah’s a chance. I wouldn’t have submitted to Chris Waller and Hermitage if I didn’t think she had a chance. Thankfully they looked upon our submission favourably. I’m more than happy to have her as our slot runner.”
Ciaron Maher’s TAB slot runner Jimmystar (Per Incanto) was second-favourite for the Everest on Monday at $7, ahead of $8 shot Joliestar (Zoustar) in Waller’s own slot, and $9 chance Briasa (Smart Missile) for the slot of Max Whitby, Steve McCann, Col Madden and Neil Werrett.