Craig Kerry
Clayton Douglas didn’t expect to have 2022 Everest winner Giga Kick back for another assault two years later, when it was runner-up – let alone for a third attempt on Saturday at seven years old.
And he is not expecting the winner of $15.5 million to upset “generational” talent Ka Ying Rising or brilliant mare Tempted in the $20 million Everest (1200m) at Randwick.
But on a potential heavy surface, the Victorian trainer is daring to dream that his wet-track marvel can add another successful chapter to his Everest story.
“He’s actually got the best record out of this field in this race ... so far,” Douglas said, with the prospect of Ka Ying Rising likely winning back-to-back titles on Saturday to join Redzel as the only two-time champions.
“Third would be a great result, but you know how Sydney works. If they get a downpour raceday, it’s a wet track and Ka Ying doesn’t handle it, something happens with Tempted, you just don’t know. It’s still a horse race.
“You saw Sheza Alibi get beat the other day, and no one thought she would get beat by Land Legend [in the Might And Power]. They are animals, and they can have an off day – although he’s going to have to have a very off day to get beat.
“I’m under no illusions. He’s a seven-year-old and this Ka Ying Rising is a generational horse, and there’s nothing to suggest he might even be better on soft ground. And what price would Tempted be if he wasn’t there? The way she won the Premiere, she’d be odds-on.
“The times he’s been running are freakish. But I can’t fault Giga Kick, he’s going great. He’s the same weight as when he ran second to Bella Nipotina [in 2024]. He’s trialled good. I think the blinkers might give him an edge, a point of difference in the twilight of his career. He’s finally got a gear change.
“He’ll run really well and hopefully there is a bit more rain to come.”
Randwick was a soft 7 on Friday afternoon after almost 100mm of rain in the past week. Predicted scattered showers could keep it in that range. The likelihood of a rain-affected track has given Ka Ying Rising’s rivals, Douglas included, a glimmer of hope, given 20 of his 22 wins have come on good Sha Tin surfaces.
Giga Kick is one of just two three-year-olds to win the Everest, a victory he achieved on a soft 6 track. A muscle tear ruled then him out for 12 months, before he returned for second place on a soft 5 in the 2024 Everest. He was also second in the TJ Smith Stakes over the Randwick 1200m on a heavy 9 and soft 7.
His most recent win, in the Champions Sprint (1200m) at Flemington last November, was on a “real bog track”. That came after a poor winter campaign and delayed return, which cost him an Everest call-up last year.
“I’ve got him back on the right leg this time around, and it’s good to see him there. To get to three Everests, not many have done that,” he said.
“I didn’t think he’d back as a five-year-old running in it, after he hurt himself. Then to get beat a short margin in 2024, it just goes to show he’s an amazing horse, a champion.”
Douglas admitted it was a surprise to see Giga Kick picked up late to replace the injured Guest House in Coolmore’s slot, following a four-lengths eighth in the Manikato Stakes (1200m). He was 10th first-up in the Moir (1000m). Douglas was confident, though, the veteran was going better than his recent form reads.
“He ran the fourth fastest last 600m in the Moir,” he said.
“The thing outside him annoyed him, and he likes a bit of room. And he needed the run. He was really big in condition, and he’s not a 1000m horse.
“Then in the Manikato we drew low with the rail out 13 metres, which wasn’t a great set up for us. Then the expected rain didn’t come. He didn’t run bad.”
As for the extreme outside draw, he said: “I don’t think barrier 12 is too much of a problem. There looks to be a lot of speed, so he should be able to get an OK run off the back of them.”
Giga Kick, with Sydney jockey Dylan Gibbons aboard, was $34 with TAB.
‘No Pride Of Jenni’: Likely leader to go his own pace in King Charles
Victorian trainer Gavin Bedggood says Just Folk won’t be doing a Pride Of Jenni in the $5 million King Charles III Stakes (1609m) as the veteran mudlark searches for a hefty cheque.
Much to the dismay of racing fans, front-running hero Pride Of Jenni was scratched from the race late on Thursday because of a leg infection.
The prospect of the nine-year-old setting a cracking tempo for superstar Autumn Glow and two-time King Charles champion Ceolwulf to chase was set to make the six-horse race a highlight of the Everest program. With her out, Chris Waller-trained Autumn Glow, Australia’s champion of last season, firmed into $1.28 and Ceolwulf drifted to $3.70.
Trainer Joe Pride was confident Ceolwulf, which has surged to victory from back in the field the past two years, would get his chance to challenge Autumn Glow in a truly run race on wet ground.
While the soft track remains, Ceolwulf’s chances of a solid tempo up front now look to sit with 10-year-old Just Folk ($26) – a go-forward horse and the only other challenger not from Waller’s stable.
Just Folk has three wins and four placings from 10 heavy track runs, and finished top three 16 times in 23 attempts on soft. Those wins include the Doncaster Prelude and Ajax Stakes in Sydney and he has placed in his past five runs.
Bedggood said the wet track at Randwick and prizemoney on offer prompted the trip north, but he was not planning a Pride Of Jenni-style breakaway out front. The King Charles offers $125,000 for fifth, while third takes home $425,000.
“I’m a realist and I wouldn’t think that we could run in the top two, but third or fourth is a definite possibility,” Bedggood said.
“He loves wet ground and any rain over the next 24 hours is only going to help his cause.
“His racing pattern is obviously laid bare. He goes forward and he looks the leader in that race, and what will be, will be.
“He’s definitely not a Pride Of Jenni. We will just be riding him where he’s comfortable.
“Jamie Mott knows my horse and I don’t have to tell him too much. He knows how he needs to be ridden and we won’t be doing anything out of the normal.
“He just needs to go a good, even gallop. Not go too slow, or too quick.
“He’s been a great money spinner for his connections and he will run well again.”
Mott and Bedggood also combine at Randwick with Tempesti ($21) in the St Leger Stakes (2600m).
A recent addition to Bedggood’s Cranbourne stable from Matt Cumani, the eight-year-old has six wins and two thirds from nine heavy track starts.
“It’s his first run for us and we haven’t had him long, but he’s pleased us,” Bedggood said.
“He’s had a gap between runs and he’s got form on wet ground, so that’s why we are taking him up. There’s options in Victoria but our tracks are getting firm.”