Rubi’s Choice delivers Preview upset for Eurell
Rubi’s Choice (Rubick) delivered one of the more unexpected results among the juvenile ranks this season when she claimed the Blue Diamond Fillies’ Preview (Gr 3, 1000m) at Caulfield on Saturday, scoring on debut for Greg Eurell.
Sent out at $26 in a race dominated by more experienced fillies, the daughter of Rubick (Encosta De Lago) was quietly ridden by Beau Mertens, tracking the speed and travelling comfortably before being brought to the outside upon straightening.
The debutante showed a good turn of foot to reel in the leaders by the 100 metres and extended further to score by 0.8 lengths over fellow first-starter I Am Aria (I Am Invincible), with Gin Twist (Home Affairs) just another 0.1 lengths behind in third. The winning time of 58.38 seconds was faster than the colts’ preview run earlier on the card.
Eurell said that Rubi’s Choice – despite having entered the race off jump-outs and without a nomination for next month’s Blue Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) – had shown enough at home to warrant stepping her out at stakes level.
“She couldn’t have led into this better than she did – I felt she was super well and we were going to get a really good guide on where she sits,” Eurell said.
Connections now face a late entry fee should they elect to continue down the Blue Diamond path. The Blue Diamond Prelude (Gr 2, 1100m) for fillies comes up at Caulfield on February 7.
“She’s not nominated for the Diamond at this point, but if she pulls up well the natural progression will be the Prelude, and then we’ll take it from there,” Eurell said. “It’ll be something that will be very comfortable to sit down and have a good think about.”
Out of the winning Haradasun (Fusaichi Pegasus) mare Redasun, Rubi’s Choice comes from a family Eurell knows well, having trained the mare and all of her progeny, including city winner Lincoln Square (Rubick).
“Oh, tremendous, mare,” he said. “I mean, everything out of her just keeps winning, no matter who she goes to and we had another two-year-old, Lincoln Square, who was a full-brother to this filly and that recipe worked. So it was the right decision to go back and it’s worked again.”
For Mertens, the win continued a strong return to riding after a farm accident that sidelined him last weekend.
“It was a pretty serious wound to the face…they could’ve fixed me up a bit more than they did,” Mertens joked. “I didn’t want to be out too long knowing there were good horses around. It’s a pleasure to get straight back into it with some good winners.”
The race did not go to plan for heavy favourite Angel’s Fury (Harry Angel), who weakened sharply to finish last of the nine runners, beaten almost 17 lengths.
Jockey Ethan Brown said the Ciaron Maher-trained filly never regained her confidence after an early mishap.
“She may have lost a bit of confidence when she stumbled; she never regathered her action,” Brown said. “She’s much better than that, and hopefully she comes through the run okay.”
Veterinary examination later revealed Angel’s Fury to be lame in the left fore.
With Saturday’s win, Rubi’s Choice became the 16th individual stakes winner for her sire Rubick. The former Coolmore and later Swettenham Stud stallion was sold to continue his stud career in China last year.
Options open for Alibaba after Caulfield victory
Alibaba (Alabama Express) provided a further twist to the Blue Diamond picture when he claimed Saturday’s Blue Diamond Preview (Listed, 1000m) for colts and geldings at Caulfield, delivering another result that left connections weighing up their next move.
Prepared by father-and-daughter training team Ken and Kasey Keys, the Alabama Express (Redoute’s Choice) colt – like fillies’ Preview winner Rubi’s Choice – was not entered for the Blue Diamond Stakes prior to Saturday, meaning a $55,000 late nomination fee would be required should connections elect to stay on that path.
Sent out a $3.20 chance with race experience on his side after finishing third in the Merson Cooper Stakes (Listed, 1000m) in November, Alibaba travelled strongly into the race under Craig Newitt and hit the front at the 200 metres.
The colt laid in under pressure, causing interference to Invicto (I Am Invincible) and High Alert (Street Boss), but was strong enough through the line to prevail by 0.4 lengths over Milsons Point (Blue Point), whose Ciaron Maher-trained stablemate Invicto, finished a further 0.2 lengths back in third. The unlucky High Alert worked home into fourth, beaten 0.85 lengths by the winner.
Kasey Keys said the colt’s maturity has been evident throughout the preparation.
“He has really settled down this prep,” Keys said. “He wasn’t the easiest early on but he has been gaining confidence every day. We’ve always known that he has the motor but it has just been a matter of him putting it together.”
Newitt said Alibaba handled the occasion well, while suggesting there is still improvement to come.
“He handled everything like an absolute professional,” the winning rider said. “He began well and once he got a half-length in front he wandered around a little bit but next time I think if we ride him a bit more conservative then you’ll see his big finish.”
Purchased for $115,000 by his trainers at the 2025 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale, the $2 million Inglis Millennium (RL, 1100m) at Randwick on February 7 presents a viable alternative for Alibaba should his connections decide not to pay the Blue Diamond late entry fee.
“We’ll wait and see how he pulls up,” Keys said. “Obviously, with a two-year-old, you can’t make too many plans ahead and it’s one race at a time, but ideally there’s the option of heading up to Sydney to the Millennium in a fortnight. So we’ll just keep our options open and let him tell us.”
Bred by Yulong, Alibaba is out of the winning Written Tycoon (Iglesia) mare Rowsthorn and is a brother to the stakes-placed Strideaway. Yulong will offer the yearling colt out of Rowsthorn by Lucky Vega (Lope De Vega) at Inglis Easter as Lot 52.
Rowsthorn produced another colt by Lucky Vega last spring and was then covered again by Alabama Express, who notched his fifth individual stakes winner courtesy of Alibaba’s Caulfield success. The son of Redoute’s Choice (Danehill) covered 227 mares at Yulong Stud in the spring at a fee of $66,000 (inc GST).