Locals look to repel poaching raid on the Queensland Derby
If the bookmakers are to be believed, an interstate raider is again likely to make off with the Queensland Derby (Gr 1, 2400m) but co-trainer Maddy Sears is hoping the stable’s “loveable rogue” Beau Dazzler (Ardrossan) can plunder the prize for the locals at Eagle Farm this Saturday.
In the last 15 years, more New Zealand-trained horses have claimed the race than stayers prepared in the Sunshine State, with Eagle Way (More Than Ready) the sole Queensland crusader able to repel the poaching raid when he prevailed in 2016, before continuing his career in Hong Kong.
Given that Beau Dazzler’s fellow colt Deep Focus (Deep Field), trained on the Gold Coast by Chris Waller’s former right-hand man Paul Shailer, is the only other representative in the Derby field from a Queensland stable (excluding satellite stables), purely on numbers alone that trend would seem set to continue in Saturday’s rescheduled contest.
Both colts are adopted Queenslanders, having been born and raised in New Zealand before crossing the Tasman Sea, with Team Sears – comprising Maddy and her father Tony – combining with bloodstock agent Paul Moroney and partner Catheryne Bruggeman to purchase Beau Dazzler for $85,000 from the Mapperley Stud draft at the 2023 Karaka Yearling Sale.
The year prior to that sale, Sears Jnr. had embarked on a trainers’ tour of New Zealand’s stud farms and, impressed by both the quality of the hospitality and the horses, she vowed to return to the ‘land of the long white cloud’ to bolster their stable stock.
Beau Dazzler was one of six yearlings subsequently sourced from the sale and, having since amassed career earnings in excess of $500,000 thanks chiefly to three victories including the Grand Prix Stakes (Gr 3, 1800m), so far he has proved the most profitable of the sextet.
Despite starting out over the sprint trips at which his stakes-winning sire Ardrossan (Redoute’s Choice) excelled, Beau Dazzler has always been pegged as a stayer in the making by Maddy Sears and, although he has never been tested beyond 2100 metres so far in his 14-start career, his co-trainer is confident the bay colt won’t be found wanting over the Derby distance.
“In the early days he was doing it on raw ability alone,” Sears told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“We had bought him at Karaka as a Derby horse so we were pleasantly surprised he won the [Listed] Phelan Ready over 1000-metres at the start of his career, but clearly his class just prevailed. He’s not a big horse but he’s always been an athletic colt and very light on his feet, and we’ve been able to build that stamina into him.
“He was quite dominant when he won over 2100 metres at Eagle Farm at the back end of last year, so we’re as confident as we can be that he’ll see out the Derby trip – as long as he gets conditions to suit.
“He’s won on a Heavy 10 track before so he’s a very versatile horse who can handle most conditions, but I definitely think he’s better on top of the ground. So with a good week of weather forecast in the build-up to the race, hopefully Eagle Farm can dry out nicely and we’re racing on no worse than a soft surface on Saturday.”
With that in mind Sears and Beau Dazzler’s Singaporean owners Melvin Foo and wife Suat Wee, who had made the trip across from Western Australia, would have breathed a sigh of relief when Queensland stewards took the decision to abandon the races last Saturday due to poor visibility and the deteriorating track.
It meant that Beau Dazzler’s regular pilot Jag Guthmann-Chester – who uses boxing and martial arts to maintain his fitness levels and keep his weight down – was forced to wait another week to make his Group 1 debut.
The pair will jump from barrier eight in Saturday’s $1 million contest, with Sears confident Beau Dazzler can outperform his opening quote of $34 – which is considerably shorter than the starting price of their only previous Derby runner, Red Wave (Red Dazzler), who finished eighth as the $101 outsider in 2022.
That represented the stable’s first starter in a Group 1 race – Beau Dazzler subsequently became number two when he ran a very creditable fifth behind the runaway winner Broadsiding (Too Darn Hot) in last year’s J.J. Atkins (Gr 1, 1600m) – and Sears is hopeful it can be a case of third–time–lucky with the sole Ardrossan in their stable.
“Winning a Group 1 would obviously be massive for us,” said Sears, who relocated from Toowoomba to Southport at the start of the year as part of the stable’s expansion to the Gold Coast Turf Club.
“It’s the pinnacle of our sport and it’s why we get out of bed early every morning. It would be a huge feather in our caps, especially so early in my training career. It would mean everything to me and to win one with Dad by my side would make it even more special.
“We’ve had faith in the horse’s ability from the start, even if he’s got his quirks and can be extremely playful. But there’s no malice to him, he’s a bit of a lovable rogue. I’ve never sat on him and I probably never will, but he’s obviously got plenty of ability so we’re willing to forgive him for being quite naughty.
“He’ll obviously have to be at his absolute best on Saturday, if you look at the field there are horses coming from all over the country for this race so we know we’re up against it. But we’ve got a lot of support behind us as one of the few Queensland stables with a runner in the Derby, so hopefully the horse can do us proud and Jag can enjoy the experience of his first ride in a Group 1.”
Team Sears won’t have long to wait before saddling up another Group 1 contender, with their stable star Yellow Brick (The Mission) – who races in the same bottle green and gold star colours as Beau Dazzler – set to take his place in Queensland’s premier contest, the Stradbroke Handicap (Gr 1, 1400m).
The bargain buy – he was sourced by Moroney for a mere $20,000 at the 2021 Magic Millions Gold Coast National Yearling Sale – narrowly missed out on securing a start in ‘The Straddie’ in 2024. However, having been assigned 53.5 kilograms for this year’s renewal, the five-year-old is already assured his berth in the $3 million showpiece at Eagle Farm on Saturday week.
“We gave him a very quiet tickover trial on Tuesday morning at Doomben, which should have brought him along really nicely for the Stradbroke,” said Sears.
“He came through his first-up run in good order and he should take huge improvement from it, so it’s all systems go for Saturday week now.”