“He’s obviously a very exciting horse and we have huge belief in him”
Household names such as Choisir (Danehill Dancer), Fastnet Rock (Danehill) and Nature Strip (Nicconi) have all won past runnings of the Black Caviar Lightning (Gr 1, 1000m) at Flemington. On Saturday, Switzerland (Snitzel) heads a 12-strong field bidding to join that illustrious roll of honour.
The Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice) colt was last seen stamping his authority as the leading three-year-old sprinter of his generation with a 2.8-length blitz in the Coolmore Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m).
That stunning top-flight breakthrough came on the back of a similarly comfortable success in the Roman Consul Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m), and connections are hopeful a short break will prove the springboard to further progress.
Should Switzerland emerge victorious on Saturday he will be following in the footsteps of another colt Chris Waller trained for Coolmore and their partners. Up-and-coming stallion Home Affairs (I Am Invincible), whose debut crop are now yearlings, struck in the Coolmore before following up in the 2022 running of the Lightning Stakes.
“We’re extremely excited to have Switzerland back in action,” said John Kennedy, Coolmore’s racing and bloodstock manager. “He’s a horse that finished off his preparation with a win in the Coolmore, which is a race that’s very close to our hearts. We won it with Home Affairs, it’s a race we sponsor and, in our minds, it’s the elite stallion-making race for three-year-olds. He’s obviously a very exciting horse and we have huge belief in him.
“He’s come back from a short break at our spelling farm at Mount White in very good order. This is his first-up run for the preparation but he trialled very nicely in Sydney leading up to the race and he had a jump out at Flemington last Friday, which we were very happy with. It’s a tough race on Saturday, there’s no doubt about it, the who’s who of the three-year-olds are going to be there, but we really like our horse and we feel like he’s going to be there to run a very nice race.”
A yearling price-tag of $1.5 million means Switzerland has long since had a lofty reputation, and he looked on course to live up to his star billing by winning his first three outings at two. However, there was a bump in the road when he finished in mid-division when well fancied for the Golden Slipper (Gr 1, 1200m), and then trailed home last of six in The Run To The Rose.
But his last two starts have seen him resume his steep upward trajectory, and Kennedy reported that vibes from within the camp have been wholly positive since.
“He’s a horse who’s always impressed us from day one as a two-year-old,” said Kennedy. “We’ve always had a high opinion of him and it’s always very positive when you hear someone like Chris Waller, who’s had so many good horses through his hands, say that he sees continuous improvement in an animal – that’s very exciting.
“All the reports have been very good, both from James McDonald and from Chris and his team, and I think they’ve done a fantastic job of managing him through his racing career so far. I think we all believe the best is yet to come, which is very exciting.”
The colt has already received a major vote of confidence from James McDonald, with the leading rider having opted to partner Switzerland at Flemington rather than Via Sistina (Fastnet Rock), who is set to contest the Apollo Stakes (Gr 2, 1400m) at Randwick that same afternoon.
Saturday’s rivals feature fellow three-year-olds Growing Empire (Zoustar) and Traffic Warden (Street Boss) who finished third and tenth respectively in the Coolmore. Godolphin’s Traffic Warden had previously had Switzerland’s measure in the Run To The Rose.
The short-priced favourite will be facing his elders for the first time, with the established brigade including I Am Me (I Am Invincible) and previous Group 1 scorers Benedetta (Hellbent), Mazu (Maurice) and Mornington Glory (Shalaa).
“He’s been up against a few of these in the past but they’re all horses that deserve to be there on Saturday and it’s a very strong field,” said Kennedy. “There seems to be a high-class crop of three-year-olds but we’re just happy to have a horse like Switzerland in a race like this because that’s what it’s all about.
“When we go to the sales and source these yearlings, it’s all about having horses on the big days, so we’re very fortunate to have a horse of his class in our system.”
The Lightning has not only been won by some generational talents, not least Black Caviar (Bel Esprit), after whom the race is now named, but it has also been used as a platform for international success too. Choisir, Takeover Target (Celtic Swing), Miss Andretti (Ihtiram) and Black Caviar all won the 1000-metre Group 1 before scoring at Royal Ascot in the same year, while more recently Nature Strip claimed the 2021 renewal before running away with the following year’s King’s Stand Stakes (Gr 1, 5f).
Asked whether Switzerland could be under consideration for such a campaign, Kennedy said: “We never rule anything out with these horses but it’s not an easy thing to do, coming from the southern hemisphere with the change in weather and everything, but we’d definitely never rule it out. At the moment we’re just taking it race by race and we’re looking towards what happens on Saturday. We’ll regroup after that and Chris, Tom, MV and Mr Magnier and the partners will have a chat and see what happens.”
He continued: “Switzerland definitely has the ability and the mindset to do it. He’s a very straightforward horse to deal with; that was the case when he was broken in here at the farm, when he’s in the system with Chris and when he’s back having his breaks at Mount White. He’s not the kind of horse you ever have to worry about because he takes everything in his stride. He’s the sort of horse who lets his racing do the talking for him.”
Whether Switzerland is pointed towards Royal Ascot or not, Coolmore have already aimed one of their crack Australian sprinters at the northern hemisphere, with Storm Boy (Justify) having switched from Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott to Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle operation.
“The track record of Australian sprinters going to Royal Ascot has definitely got people talking and it’s something we think will definitely continue to happen over the coming years,” said Kennedy. “Being European myself I personally would love to see a horse like Switzerland go to Royal Ascot and showcase the strength of racing here in Australia. It’s something we’ll definitely consider, but we’d have to see how he comes through his preparation because we’ll always do the right thing by the horse.”
He added: “We’re fortunate to be in this position and we don’t take it for granted. We’re very lucky to have a horse like Switzerland; he’s already won the stallion-making race of the year in terms of how we weigh them up, and we’re very excited to see what he does next.”
Ciaron Maher and the Yulong Investments team will be hoping the drop to 1000m will help Growing Empire close the three-length advantage Switzerland held in the Coolmore.
The Zoustar (Northern Meteor) colt came agonisingly close to winning a Group 1 prize when beaten just a short head by stablemate Southport Tycoon (Written Tycoon) in the Manikato Stakes. He followed that effort with a fine third to Bella Nipotina (Pride Of Dubai) in The Everest (Gr 1, 1200m), before filling the same position in the Coolmore.
While that race record means Growing Empire would be far from winning a Group 1 out of turn, Yulong’s general manager Vin Cox said the team was facing this latest test with hope and ambition, rather than expectation.
“We’re excited to see him back,” said Cox. “He’s all but won a Group 1 race but hasn’t done it yet, so we’re looking forward to hopefully, whether it’s Saturday or somewhere further down the line, him ultimately winning a Group 1.
“Any Group 1 is hard to win though, they’re generally deep fields, and this looks like it’s a race for the three-year-olds. Switzerland has obviously already won a Group 1 at three down the Flemington straight, the Godolphin horse, Traffic Warden, looks very promising, and then there’s the older horses to contend with who are the seasoned campaigners. They don’t give Group 1s away and I’m sure this will be the same.”
Growing Empire was reported to have benefitted from a short spell, as Cox continued: “They’re very happy with the way the horse is going, they’re happy with the way he looks and they say he’s strengthened up a bit. He obviously enjoys the Flemington straight and hopefully conditions on Saturday will be to his liking. It’s an exciting race and it’ll be great to be there at Flemington. It’s a Group 1 sprint over five furlongs, and that’s what we love here in Australia.”
As with so many runners in the field, the outcome of Saturday’s race could potentially put Growing Empire on a path towards Royal Ascot, although Cox said a whole range of options remained open with regards to his future programme.
“You’re always guided by what happens after each race but we’d love to end up in a Moir, a Newmarket then potentially a TJ Smith in Sydney. [Royal Ascot] is in the back of your mind, but until you get the horse back on the racecourse locally you can’t commit to those sorts of things until you know you’re competitive.”
Given his high level of form, with his three Group 1 places adding to victories in the Breeders’ Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m) and McNeil Stakes (Gr 3, 1200m), success on Saturday would move Growing Empire one step closer to securing a berth on the YuLong stallion roster.
“We’d love to put him on the roster and put a brass plate with his name on it on one of the doors in the YuLong stallion barn, but we’ve got a little bit to do yet,” said Cox. “He doesn’t necessarily [have to win a Group 1] but we’d love to have him as a highly commercial horse, and for him to be highly commercial you do need to tick that Group 1 box.”