Laurie looking for another season to treasure
Matt Laurie faces the daunting task of extending the winning streaks of his boom filly Treasurethe Moment (Alabama Express) and unbeaten colt Vinrock (I Am Invincible) but, one week out from their respective returns to semi-competitive action, the Mornington trainer couldn’t be happier with how his dynamic duo are building towards their spring campaigns.
Having primarily raced against their own age and sex in their careers to date, Laurie readily concedes that his two stable stars, who are both set to trial on the course proper at Mornington next Wednesday, will face an acid test over the coming months.
After registering eight successive wins in 2024-25, including three at Group 1 level, Treasurethe Moment was without peer in this season’s three-year-old ranks and while ATC Sires’ Produce Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m) hero Vinrock perhaps has a handful of juveniles ahead of him in the race to be crowned the nation’s best two-year-old, not many of them can boast an unblemished record.
The pressure to add to their picket fence of wins might keep some trainers awake at night, but you get the distinct impression that Laurie’s laconic nature ensures he is well-rested as he sets about maintaining the momentum generated by a season which, by winners (64 and counting) and prize–money (over $5.3 million), has comfortably been his most profitable since he saddled up his first runner back in 2005.
The recent addition of stakes-winning mare See You In Heaven (Divine Prophet) as well as several new recruits formerly trained by his father-in-law David Brideoake – most notably three precocious juveniles bearing the Prestige prefix – has significantly bolstered Laurie’s firepower ahead of the new season and taken his expanded stable numbers close to the 100 mark.
But, like any trainer worth their salt, it is quality rather than quantity that Laurie values most, which brings us neatly back to Treasurethe Moment. The rising four-year-old is slated to kick off her campaign on August 30 in the Memsie Stakes (Gr 1, 1400m) at Caulfield, where she could meet seasoned warriors such as Mr Brightside (Bullbars) and Antino (Redwood).
Her path from there is not yet set in stone, but at this stage the racing purist in Laurie – not to mention the sage advice of his eldest son, Lachlan – has him leaning firmly towards a mouthwatering clash with defending champion Via Sistina (Fastnet Rock) in the Cox Plate (Gr 1, 2040m).
However, Laurie has not ruled out a tilt at the Caulfield Cup (Gr 1, 2400m) should she be better suited by a more demanding test of stamina at that stage of her prep.
With that all still to be played out, Laurie’s more pressing concern is building the filly’s residual fitness to ensure that, in precisely one month’s time, she is raring to return to the races in the opening Group 1 contest of the new term.
“She’s come back from her spell in really good order,” Laurie told ANZ News.
“She’s bright and happy and her summer coat is already starting to come through, so all the signs so far are very positive. She was out in the paddock for around five or six weeks and she put on plenty of weight in that time, so she really enjoyed her break.
“Damian [Lane] will ride her in next Wednesday’s trial, we won’t ask her to do too much but it will be great to see her back in action then we’ll build towards her first-up run in the Memsie. She’ll most likely have three runs leading into her grand final, which will be either the Cox Plate or the Caulfield Cup.
“Obviously if we went along the Cox Plate path, we’d be bumping into Via Sistina. I wouldn’t necessarily say we would be keen to take her on, she’s an incredible racehorse and from a selfish point of view I’d rather tackle the lightest field possible. But when you compete in these major races, you have to take on the best of the best.
“We know we’re up against it with the filly this season, it would be nice to think we can continue her winning streak but you have to be realistic. She’s had an amazing year and is already a star regardless of what happens in the future, but we are now taking on older and much more seasoned horses than she’s faced so far. They’ve been competing at the highest level for a while now, so it’s going to be a really tough ask for her in these big weight-for-age races but we’re happy to test her in them and see what she’s got to offer.
“I haven’t spoken to the team at Yulong about it but I’m sure they would be happy to see Treasurethe Moment and Via Sistina going up against one another in the Cox Plate, because it gives them a better chance of winning the race. They have so many horses going around that it would be impossible for them to avoid one another. They left it up to me to program her races this past year, but I’m sure they would want some input this preparation so we’ll have a discussion and come up with a joint plan.”
Having acquired Vinrock for a sizeable fee in the aftermath of a Sires’ Produce victory which embellished his record to three wins from three starts, Yulong will also have some say in the planning of the crack colt’s campaign but, given his aptitude in handling the Sydney way of going, the Golden Rose (Gr 1, 1400m) in late-September inevitably looms large on the horizon.
Perhaps appropriately, Yulong will sponsor this year’s edition of the Golden Rose and should Vinrock manage to double his tally of Group 1 wins, the costs associated with supporting the contest would pale into significance compared to the substantial boost his future service fee would receive.
“The main decision at this stage is whether we head into the Golden Rose with one or two runs under his belt,” said Laurie.
“We’ll just see how he comes through next week’s trial, and then make a decision about where he kicks off after that. He’ll be a great addition to Yulong’s stallion roster but we’re hoping he’s still got plenty of racing yet, and if he can win a Group 1 as a three-year-old it would add enormously to his value at stud.”
The Sires’ Produce beaten brigade included his new stablemate Prestige Forever (Ole Kirk), who after leading may have peaked on his run but still only finished two and a half lengths off the winner.
Prestige Forever was one of several upwardly mobile horses to make the short trip down the road to Laurie’s stables earlier this year, once Brideoake had made the decision to call time on his long and prosperous training career.
Given that Brideoake’s daughter Kate is not only married to Laurie but also an integral member of the stable – she was on strapping duties for Treasurethe Moment’s triumph in the Vinery Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 2000m) – it was perhaps inevitable that the senior statesman’s son-in-law would be the beneficiary of the dispersal.
However, any charges of nepotism could be quickly dispelled by pointing to a strike–rate of 18.5 per cent in his home state of Victoria which puts Laurie behind only Grahame Begg and Team Freedman as of the close of racing on Tuesday.
With Prestige Forever having already acquired black type success, Prestige Ole (Ole Kirk) landing the Vobis Gold Plate (1400m), and stakes-placed filly Prestige Snitzel (Snitzel) signing off her first racing prep with a dominant maiden win in the Mornington Sires (1200m) on her home track, the future for the talented trio looks as bright as the lime green and yellow colours they carry for Hong Kong-based owner Eric Yeung.
“You only need to look at their previous form to see that these Prestige horses have got plenty of ability,” Laurie said.
“Prestige Ole and Prestige Forever are both lovely Ole Kirk colts and Prestige Snitzel has got all the makings of a really nice filly. They have settled in really well to our systems, and they will all be running in stakes races over the spring.
“It’s difficult to pick a standout but I do really like the filly [Prestige Snitzel], she looks to have a lot of upside and there are plenty of options for her coming up, with the most obvious being the Thousand Guineas. If Prestige Forever can continue to improve then the Coolmore [Stud Stakes] comes into play, especially as he has already performed well down the Flemington straight when he finished second on debut behind Shining Smile in a Listed race there.
“Then for Prestige Ole, I think a race like the Carbine Club would be a really nice option, so it’s exciting times for all three of them and for the whole stable. It will be very hard to replicate the success we’ve had this season, but getting some quality young horses into the stable gives us a great chance of building into the future so hopefully they can take the next step in their careers.”