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Doomben 10,000 the crowning glory for Rothfire and Heathcote
Ziva Mullins and Karl Patterson
ANZ News
Trainer Rob Heathcote has enjoyed some of Queensland racing’s greatest moments with champions such as Buffering (Mossman), but he declared Rothfire’s remarkable victory in Saturday’s Doomben 10,000 (Gr 1, 1200m) among the finest achievements of his career after the veteran sprinter produced an emotional hometown triumph at Doomben.
Almost six years after his first elite-level success in the JJ Atkins Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) as a two-year-old back in 2020, Rothfire (Rothesay) returned to the Group 1 winners circle and in doing so, became the oldest horse to win the Doomben 10,000 since it was first run in 1933 and the first Australian horse in over two decades to claim Group 1 victories at both two and eight years of age.
"To all the Queenslanders out there who had faith in Rothie, this is for you," an emotional Heathcote said in the enclosure after Brad Rawiller returned to scale on the $5.76 million earner. "This is the culmination of my career and it’s his crowning glory.”
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Rothfire was faced with a new generation of headline sprinters including race favourite Jimmysstar (Per Incanto), along with heavily-backed colts Napoleonic (Wootton Bassett) and Grafterburners (Graff), both viewed as emerging stallion prospects.
The field also featured exciting three-year-old Beadman (Snitzel), Group 1 winner Private Harry (Harry Angel), multiple stakes winners Skybird (Exosphere) and Uncommon James (Cable Bay), as well as last-start stakes winner Spicy Martini (Justify).
Drawn awkwardly in barrier 15, Brad Rawiller allowed the gelding to settle deep throughout before gradually building momentum approaching the home turn and was perfectly placed to challenge front-runner Zarastro (I Am Invincible), producing a turn of foot that a horse half his age would have been proud of in the straight.
Rothfire surged clear late from the in-form mare Spicy Martini, with Napoleonic finishing third as the veteran gelding received a Group 1 ovation from the Doomben crowd.
"He’s been an absolute trooper for Queensland,” Heathcote continued. “We’ve dealt with several severe injuries along the way but he always comes back.
“This my first Group 1 since Startantes won the Tatt’s Tiara in 2022. I was also here on Black Caviar Day and that was amazing but for Rothfire to do what he has done today means the world to me."
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Rothfire’s cult status in Queensland has only strengthened with time. After the gelding captured the 2024 King Of The Mountain (1200m) at Toowoomba carrying 60 kilos from a wide gate, Heathcote revealed stable staff affectionately place a crown on his box at home and call him “The King”.
“It’s a miracle this horse is still racing,” Heathcote said at the time.
Rothfire may not have been considered in the betting off the back of his tenth placing at Rockhampton in early May, but Heathcote revealed Rothfire’s disappointing effort in The Archer (1300m) may not have been as poor as it appeared on paper and instead helped to tighten the gelding perfectly for the Group 1 feature.
A natural from the outset, Rothfire exploded onto the scene as a juvenile during the 2020 Brisbane Winter Carnival, winning the Champagne Classic (Gr 2, 1200m) by more than a length over Isotope (Deep Field) and then producing a dominant display when winning the J J Atkins by more than three lengths.
He then travelled south as a spring three-year-old and immediately measured up against the best of his generation in Sydney, defeating Ole Kirk (Written Tycoon) in the Run To The Rose (Gr 2, 1200m) at Rosehill.
Two weeks later he again clashed with Ole Kirk when fourth in the Golden Rose (Gr 1, 1400m), the contest in which he broke down so badly it was feared he may never race again. Fellow future stallions North Pacific (Brazen Beau) and King’s Legacy (Redoute's Choice) filled the placings that day.
Rothfire made several successful raids south, capturing the Ian McEwen Stakes (Gr 2, 1000m) at Moonee Valley and the Sydney Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) at Randwick, adding further riches to a syndicate managed by Heathcote’s wife Vicki. He has gone close to further Group 1 success previously, finishing second to Sunshine In Paris (Invader) in last year’s Doomben 10,000, in addition to runner-up finishes in the 2023 Stradbroke Handicap (Gr 1, 1400m) and 2022 Manikato Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m).
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Brad Rawiller was riding the eight-year-old for the first time in the Doomben 10,000 and sought advice from his brother Nash, who piloted Rothfire to win the 2023 Victory Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m).
"That made it so much better when Nash was there to greet me when I came back in,” Brad said.
“I was happy coming into the race. I know you could make a case for him being past his best but I thought I had a genuine chance even though he was one of the outsiders. I couldn't believe how good he looked, so full credit to Rob and his team.
"I didn't want to get into a speed battle because that would have been game over. I sat three and four wide because it was better ground out there. He was picking up before the turn and, with older horses, you just need to give them that little bit of confidence.
“I knew the trainer had done his job and I knew the horse would keep giving because he's a fighter. That made me think we might be on here today."
Despite multiple injury setbacks throughout his career, Rothfire has remained a consistent force at the elite level and, remarkably, the story may not yet be over.
“We might even have another crack at the Kingsford Smith,” Heathcote said.
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Queen Regent shocks Scone as Miss Freelove lands breakthrough win
A pair of breakthrough stakes winners provided two of the headline performances at Scone on Saturday, with Queen Regent (Wild Ruler) causing one of the biggest upsets of the carnival before Miss Freelove (Tassort) captured a deserved black type win later in the afternoon.
The $200,000 Woodlands Stakes (Listed, 1100m) produced a stunning boilover when the regally named Queen Regent surged home to score at odds of $151, handing Blake Ryan his maiden stakes victory as a trainer at her second start.
Ridden patiently by Jay Ford, the daughter of Wild Ruler (Snitzel) settled with cover before unleashing a powerful late sprint to defeat Found The Gold (Too Darn Hot) by 1.6 lengths, with $1.8 million yearling Lady Catalina (Written Tycoon) third. Hot favourite and $1.6 million purchase Moscatel (Snitzel) finished sixth.
The result capped a remarkable rise for the filly, who Ryan purchased for just $40,000 from the HTBA Yearling Sale before failing to attract support from buyers or investors. She later failed to meet a $30,000 reserve at the Ready To Run Sale before breeder Geoff Wilson elected to rejoin the ownership group.
“We got it all wrong on debut at Hawkesbury [last month],” Ryan said. “She went too hard, but she’s always shown us good ability.
“I told Jay whatever you do just find cover. She switched off beautifully and that gave her the chance to show her acceleration.”
Ford said the filly benefited from being ridden more conservatively after overdoing things on debut.
“She has shown us so much at home,” Ford said. “Being held up for part of the straight probably worked in her favour because once she got clear, she really let down.”
Queen Regent’s dam Miss Vixen (Foxwedge) won at Caulfield and Sandown for trainer Cindy Alderson and her mother Lynn, who’ve already enjoyed a season to remember with born-again sprinter Jigsaw (Manhattan Rain).
The filly became the second stakes winner for first-season Newgate Farm sire Wild Ruler, following on from Silver Slipper Stakes (Gr 2, 1100m) winner Stretan Ruler. He stands for a fee of $27,500 (inc GST).
Later in the day, fellow Newgate Farm sire Tassort (Brazen Beau) chalked up his fourth individual stakes winner when Peter Snowden-trained filly Miss Freelove claimed a deserved breakthrough in the Denise’s Joy Stakes (Listed, 1100m).
The three-year-old, placed at Group 3 level during the spring and winner of the Magic Millions Sunlight Consolation 3YO Plate (1100m) in January, produced a strong finish on the rail under Rachel King to edge out Mercy Me (Hellbent) by a head. Shady Road (Written Tycoon) was a head further away in third.
It was King’s third Denise's Joy Stakes win after her earlier successes on Zapateo (Brazen Beau) in 2022 and Fituese (Deep Field) in 2020. King, riding the filly for the first time, credited the addition of winkers with helping her settle closer in running.
“She was able to travel well through the race and stay in contention,” King said. “She’s got a really good turn of foot and she really attacked the line.”
Stable representative Aaron Lau confirmed the filly was likely to continue on to the Brisbane winter carnival following her maiden stakes success.
“She deserves to be added to Peter’s team for Brisbane,” Lau said. “She was excellent today. We always knew she would run a strong 1100 metres.
“We added the winkers because she has been getting a little too far back in her races and she enjoyed a good run. Rachel gave her a great ride and the filly was really game under pressure.''
Bred by Redback North’s Middleton family, Miss Freelove was purchased for $110,000 by Trilogy Racing and Suman Hedge Bloodstock from Twin Hills Stud at the Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale. She is out of Vee (Sebring) – an unraced half-sister to Perth Stakes (Listed, 1100m) winner Terror Force (Al Maher) – and has now won four of her ten starts and earned over $400,000.
The carnival concluded on a sombre note with news that hobby trainer Stephen Meyer had died following injuries sustained in an incident at Friday’s opening day meeting.
The 71-year-old Tamworth horseman was kicked by a horse in the mounting yard area prior to the final race on Friday, in which his galloper Danza In The Dark (Summa Cum Laude) competed. Meyer, who trained on a small scale for almost two decades, was best known for campaigning Danza In The Dark to victories in last year’s Walcha Cup (1440m) and Quirindi Cup (1600m).
In a statement, Racing NSW chief executive Peter V’landys described Meyer as a respected horseman admired for his integrity, humility and passion for racing.
