Maher and Eustace in maiden Melbourne Cup success with Gold Trip
Australian Bloodstock claims second victory in Australia’s national race with European import
The ability of Australian Bloodstock’s Jamie Lovett and Luke Murrell to source quality international horses suitable for Down Under once again came to the fore yesterday when Gold Trip (Outstrip) delivered the Newcastle syndicators their second Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m).
Eight years after the German-bred Protectionist (Monsun) won the Cup for Australian Bloodstock, and 12 months since Gold Trip was controversially ruled out of the 2021 spring carnival, the Ciaron Maher and David Eustace-trained entire carried the same colours to victory in the famous race.
By Outstrip, a Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (Gr 1, 1m) winning son of champion reverse shuttler Exceed And Excel (Danehill) who was sold last year to stand in Brazil after beginning his stud career at Darley’s Dalham Hall Stud, Gold Trip was bred in France and was initially trained by Fabrice Chappet to win once and be placed three times at Group 1 level prior to his sale to Australian Bloodstock at a reported cost of $2.3 million.
“I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet. Everyone’s had a lot to do with this horse, John Bunting [farrier], he’s had this horse in very good order all the way along,” Maher said post-race of his first Melbourne Cup success.
“He’s a great mate, great bloke and he’s very good at what he does. Dave [Eustace] and my brother [Declan], everyone, it’s just huge.
“To run in three of the big ones and have him present in the Cup like that – fantastic.”
Gold Trip, who won by two lengths over Emissary (Kingman) on a deteriorating Soft 7 track, was one of five Maher and Eustace-trained horses in the 22-runner field.
The winner’s stablemate High Emocean (Ocean Park) was a further one and a quarter lengths away in third.
“I can’t believe it. I’m obviously a bit overcome. It’s a dream that we all want to [win]. It’s the pinnacle for our sport,” Eustace said.
After his planned spring campaign was derailed last year by Racing Victoria’s compulsory veterinary scans, Gold Trip finally began his campaign on the NSW-Victoria border in July, finishing runner-up in a lowly barrier trial at Albury as a lead-in to a first-up third in the Winter Challenge Stakes (Listed, 1500m).
He returned to Victoria to finish third in the Naturalism Stakes (Gr 3, 2000m) in September, ran fifth in the Turnbull Stakes (Gr 1, 2000m), was runner-up to Durston (Sea The Moon), who was ruled out of yesterday’s race due to the veterinary scans, in the Caulfield Cup (Gr 1, 2400m) and was then a luckless runner in the Cox Plate (Gr 1, 2040m) when finishing ninth.
“We were pulling our hair out thinking we’ve done our clients’ money,” Ciaron Maher Racing’s bloodstock manager Will Bourne told Racing.com yesterday.
“But they [owners] were very fair and patient, they didn’t put too much pressure on us and now here he is, a Melbourne Cup winner.
“It is very hard to buy horses that are this expensive, but Jamie and I teamed up and we both agreed he was the one to buy.
“I think we got outbid at one stage, I think the Saudis tried to buy him, but they fell out and we ended up getting the horse two weeks later.
“He was a very, very expensive horse, so when we couldn’t get a run in [last year’s] Cox Plate, they [owners] were very good and very patient. To come back 12 months later and win a Melbourne Cup has made up for it.”
Lovett said: “He’s a very classy horse and I wasn’t sure whether we’d ever get to a Melbourne Cup, but after he had that soft run in the Cox Plate when he didn’t get a chance to let down, I thought ‘This could be his chance for a Cup’.”
It was a day of redemption for Gold Trip’s jockey Mark Zahra who last year spent the spring on the sidelines for his involvement in the Mornington Airbnb scandal, a ban which prevented him from riding the 2021 Melbourne Cup winner Verry Elleegant (Zed).
“This time last year in Byron Bay I think I was getting told off for drinking too much after Verry Elleegant won,” Zahra said.
“I felt terrible, and I was probably drinking my way out of it and Elise [partner] was saying ‘don’t drink too much’, and I was saying what else do you want me to do, my horse just won the Melbourne Cup?
“I think about it all the time that I could have ridden her, so for it to come today and I’ve got good mates in the horse.
“And for Elise to be here, it’s unbelievable.”
Gold Trip, a half-sister to the stakes-placed Got Wind (Olympic Glory), is out of the Aga Khan mare Sarvana (Dubai Destination), who was unplaced in one minor race in France but is a sibling of Group 3-winning miler Sarkiyla (Oasis Dream).
Melbourne Cup favourite Deauville Legend (Sea The Stars) ran fourth for trainer James Ferguson, incidentally a one-time housemate of Eustace and Ed Crisford, the co-trainer of Without A Fight (Teofilo) who finished 13th in the Cup.
“He’s run a solid race,” Ferguson said. “It would have been a different story if it [the track] wouldn’t have been so soft. He was given a beautiful ride but like I said, he just didn’t handle the ground.”
Crisford, who trains in partnership with his father Simon, said of his cup charge: “He jumped well and got into a good position. William [Buick, rider] just said he hated the ground, it is soft out there, it is softer than we expected it to be.
“He had a good trip, he just stopped quickly in that ground. He does need quick ground, his best form is in quick ground, he ran a good race, but he just stopped quickly.”
Kracking start for syndicator Donalds Racing with Group 3 win
In December last year Simon Zahra had just gone out on his own after splitting from long-time training partner Mathew Ellerton and he told fledgling syndicator Donalds Racing to buy a pocket-rocket Ribchester (Iffraaj) colt from the paddock at Spendthrift Australia.
Fast forward almost 11 months and the $25,000 colt called Krakarib is a Maribyrnong Plate (Gr 3, 1000m) winner at Flemington on Melbourne Cup day and connections are now dreaming of Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) success.
Krakarib ($26) also staved off a gelding operation with his surprise victory, leading throughout to defeat $9 chance Little Brose (Per Incanto) by three quarters of a length with Awestruck (Hellbent), who returned at $6, another three quarters of a length away in third.
Donalds Racing’s first two-year-old winner, Krakarib was sent out at big odds after finishing sixth in the Maribyrnong Trial Stakes (Listed, 1000m) a month earlier behind Zulfiqar (Exceed And Excel), the $4 favourite yesterday who ran fifth, beaten three lengths.
“We had a good plan. Just to let him roll. The other day he held him up and he over-raced and wasn’t breathing right,” Zahra said.
“We kept him nice and fresh and well and we said to Damien [Thornton, jockey] not to overcomplicate it. Just go to the front and let him breathe and use his natural speed.
“We thought he could win first-up [but] he got buried on the fence and he just did everything wrong. I said to Damien, ‘just let him roll [and get] into a good rhythm’.
“He’s pretty well educated. He’s been in work a long time and been through the system three times.
“I was pretty confident coming into today that he’d run a super race.”
Donalds Racing’s Alex Vinar, who runs the start-up syndication business with his brother-in-law Todd Hughes and has 45 horses on the books, was thrilled with Krakrib’s and the company’s breakthrough stakes win.
“Simon Zahra helped pick him out. I’m only learning the ropes, but Simon took us under his wing and we’re trying to support him where we can and he supports us where we can,” an elated Vinar told ANZ Bloodstock News yesterday of the growing Donalds Racing-Zahra Racing partnership.
“Simon said [last December] that he’ll just run, he’s a little whippet and to buy him. He said to us, ‘he will be your first two-year-old runner of the year and to snatch him up.
“It all started with a punters club throwing in $20 each a week, so we’re absolutely rapt.”
Thornton galloped Krakarib at Flemington last week and said the colt had progressed nicely from his debut run.
Thornton said the race experience and a little more work had helped Krakarib yesterday.
“I think [that experience] helped. He’d seen the straight last time when he did a little bit wrong,” the winning jockey said.
“He’s got a few attitude issues but if we can iron them out, he’ll be alright.”
Krakarib is from the same family as Rosemont Stud’s young stallion Hanseatic (Street Boss) and further back Black Caviar (Bel Esprit), All Too Hard (Casino Prince) and Ole Kirk (Written Tycoon).
Bought by Spendthrift Australia in 2020 for $250,000 from the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale carrying Krakarib, Skagerrak (Dawn Approach) was on-sold this year in foal to Dirty Work (Written Tycoon) to Ricky Surace’s B2B Thoroughbreds for $400,000 upon the American stud owners choosing to close down its Australian operation after founder B. Wayne Hughes’ death.
Karakarib’s win continued a good week for Ribchester, who also had three-year-old Plymstock score at Rosehill on Saturday.
Plymstock won on debut in January at Randwick, becoming Ribchester’s first Australian winner, and has gone on to race on five further occasions, placing in the Dalrello Stakes (Listed, 1000m) in April.
The sire is also represented by the progressive Godolphin filly Portray, who will contest the Desirable Stakes (Listed, 1400m) at Flemington tomorrow.
Four-time Group 1 winner Ribchester, a two-time European champion miler and Ascot’s straight mile record-holder, shuttles to Haunui Farm in New Zealand where his first New Zealand yearlings will be presented at Karaka in January.