Godolphin with a rare $3million Magic Millions Classic contender
It’s not often the powerhouse Godolphin team have a Magic Millions runner but their promising two-year-old colt Parkour ($2.50F) could fit that bill.
After a solid second on debut in the Magic Millions 2YO Classic at Ballarat, the son of Extreme Choice put them to the sword with a dominant win over Vianarra ($13) by a length and a quarter at Royal Randwick. A brave Sacred Fort ($6) was a further short head back in third after a torrid run in transit sitting three-wide no cover the trip.
Having only purchased two yearlings at the previous Magic Millions sales, Parkour presents an opportunity for trainer James Cummings to have a rare runner in the rich two-year-old restricted race and he feels his charge has the right qualities to make his presence felt.
“There is a lot about this two-year-old that screams out that he is a genuine two-year-old contender,” Cummings said.
“But he needed to keep improving and that’s what he keeps doing, he keeps stepping up to the plate.
“He was nicely furnished, he looked fit today but there is a bit of improvement in him.
“He stepped out and got beaten three and a half lengths on debut, but he has won by a length going away and he is an interesting prospect.
“That will safely get him into the Magic Millions field if we choose to go that way.”
Rider Jamie Kah, who had previously rode Parkour in the Ballarat feature, was full of praise for the preparation that Cummings had put into the colt. She opted to settle last in the run and save him for one final sprint once they cornered.
“He’s not a 1000m squibbie sort of horse, he wants further and today I just made sure I popped out and gave him the whole straight,” Kah said.
“It’s like riding a five-year-old out there. I love riding Godolphin two-year-olds, because they are so well educated.
“I’ve always liked this horse, I’ve done a bit of work on him before Ballarat.
“He’s still doing it all on raw ability. It hasn’t really dropped of clicked yet with him so he’s an exciting horse.”
Today’s victory saw Parkour firm into $8 in fixed odds betting with the TAB for the Magic Millions 2YO Classic in two week’s time.
More Racing News
Dan Morton keeps faith with 2024 Railway Stakes mare
Trainer Dan Morton has shrugged aside Super Smink’s horror barrier draw and still thinks she can win the Group 1 Swan Draught-Railway Stakes (1600m) at Ascot on Saturday. A layer of complexity was added to Super Smink’s Railway Stakes bid after she was handed barrier 18, but Dan Morton is keeping the...
Timing right for Port Lockroy in G1 Railway Stakes bid
He’s one of five interstate raiders and the outsider of the quintet, but co-trainer, Rob Archibald believes there is a sense of timing about Port Lockroy in Saturday’s Group 1 Railway Stakes (1600m) at Ascot. Rob Archibald, who shares training duties with Annabel Neasham, says Port Lockroy put himself into Railway Stakes...
Royal task for Gilded Water at local debut
A benchmark race on The Gong undercard will add some Royal flavour to the stand-alone Kembla Grange meeting when a horse owned by His Majesty King Charles III makes his local debut. Four-year-old Gilded Water has been sent to Australia to continue his racing career, having started just four times in the...
Improving trio to fly flag for Godolphin at Kembla Grange
Godolphin doesn’t have a representative in The Gong, but James Cummings is content to rely on a trio of up-and-coming sprinters to carry the stable’s hopes at the stand-alone Kembla Grange meeting. Fleetwood will headline the leading yard’s squad when he resumes in the Group 3 The Warra (1000m), while Pisanello and Restonica contest benchmark...
Jason Collett hoping to find Express lane in The Gong
Jason Collett is resigned to the fact that he will be more reliant on luck than good management as he tries to coax another win out of Territory Express in the $1 million The Gong at Kembla Grange. The Provincial-Midway Championships Final victor in the autumn, Territory Express has a get-back racing pattern...
Mark Walker aims for ‘new’ hometown Cranbourne Cup
Trainer Mark Walker has a good record when in form New Zealand gallopers land in Australia. Walker’s latest ‘import’ is It’s A Wild Night who will have his first Australian outing in the Listed Cranbourne Cup (1600m) on Saturday. It’s A Wild Night arrived at Walker’s Cranbourne base just over a week ago...
Railway Stakes 2024 timing perfect for Baker’s Bel
In-form mare Belclare will need to overcome a wide alley to land her first Australian Group One win in the Railway Stakes at Ascot, and connections believe Nash Rawiller is the perfect man for the job. A two-time victor at the highest level in New Zealand, Belclare joined the Sydney stable of Bjorn...
Trainer Gavin Bedggood chasing Fortune in The Meteorite
Gavin Bedggood hopes the decision to take Oscar’s Fortune to Cranbourne for a midweek gallop will pay off handsomely on Saturday. Oscar’s Fortune runs in the $1 million The Meteorite (1200m), a new ‘slot race’ that Southside Racing, a merged entity of the Cranbourne and Pakenham Clubs, runs for the first time. The former...
John Stewart eyes Melbourne with 2024 Japan Cup fancy
Goliath faces one of the toughest tasks in racing this weekend, beating the Japanese at home in their biggest race, but John Stewart is already planning his next moves with his star recruit and Australia is on the itinerary. The ambitious American has quickly become a powerful investor in Australian racing and...
Hedged poised to give The Warra rivals a trim-up
The Magic Millions carnival is the campaign focal point for promising sprinter Hedged, but trainers Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr are hoping he can knock off a feature race along the way. The gelding will resume in the Group 3 The Warra (1000m) at Kembla Grange on Saturday, his first start...