By Ric ChapmanThat man Rogie (trainer Graeme Rogerson) has done it again. He never seems far from the headlines at Magic Millions time and when his hunky gray colt by Redoute's Choice--Skating won the $1 million Magic Millions 2-Year-Old Classic over 1,200 meters, he was surrounded by media yet again.
The night before, the same thing happened. Rogerson made the final bid to land the Magic Millions yearling sale's top colt when he nabbed a son of Danehill for $700,000.
Well, he can pay for it now. Bradbury's Luck, the aptly named star of Rogerson's juvenile team, made it two wins from three starts when he gained a glorious run on the rail to land the big race on the Gold Coast by a length in 1.09.45.
"He should be unbeaten," declared the always confident Rogerson. "He blundered badly at the start of his first race and was so green. I tipped him out and he's had two wins now since returning. We knew he was good after he won that stakes race beating some smart ones at Randwick a few weeks back. And I really thought he'd be hard to beat here."
He was aided by a masterful Hugh Bowman ride. He stayed on the rails, never going around a horse, and was simply too strong in the run home.
Mind you, at 14-1 he was liked by a few, but not by many. Another son of the emerging superstar Redoute's Choice (Danehill--Shantha's Choice) was favored--by a long way. Snitzel, who had strung together three runaway wins from three starts to date, was 1-3 with the bettors. But bad luck deserted him at the draw. He sprang from 11 in the field 16 and never got near the rail.
He drove hard early to try and lead but Rogerson's other runner, yet another son of Redoute's Choice, named Al Samer, took him on from the get go. They eyeballed one another at breakneck speed throughout and when they turned for home, poor old Snitzel, who isn't very big, got on the wrong leg for the run in and hung. Some people viewing the race thought he was sore but to his credit he kept grinding away evetually running third, dead-heating for that spot with Al Samer.
Splitting them was the bush horse who was 100-1. His name Emit Time, and no, he's not by Redoute's Choice. He's by Gilded Time and if the truth is told, he should have won the race. He came from midfield with a powerful burst but seemed to resnt being struck with the whip down the stretch, running away from it each time. He was beaten a length on the line but veered right off the track in the closing stages. A straighht run sees him land the prize.
But honors went to Bradbury's Luck, a beautifully named colt who now has netted his owners $625,000. Bradbury's Luck's dam is Skating and the colt was named after Stephen Bradbury, the man who with a lap to go in the final of the speedskating at the last Winter Olympiics was in last place.
He was still there on the home turn, but the leaders collided, all sprawling to the ground and Bradbury, the ponly one left standing, saunted home in front. His namesake may have had his own share of luck, but he is a gifted colt none-the-less.
The other $1 million race on Magic Millions raceday was the 3-year-old Cassic and it was won by Tippitaka (
Red Ransom--Strawberry Girl). He, like Bradbury's Luck cost $225,000 at the sale when purchased as a yearling and in contrast to the 2-year-old winner, he sailed home from well back tio win the 1400 meters (7 furlongs) affair running away by just over a length.
"I am vindicated," said his trainer Tony McEvoy. I told his owner this time a year ago that he had a serious racehorse on his hands but then he lost form. The owner told me I was a mug but I kept faith in him. We then gelded Tippitaka and now he has come back and won this, I couldn't be happier."
Standing next to him was the owner, the flamboyant part owner of the Magic Millions sales company, John Singleton. So happy was he to win one of his own races with his own horse, he declared the bar open and a surge of people, probably 50% of the 36,000 in attendance, went for their free drink.
Tippitaka ran 1:21.46, beating the filly Serenote (Victory Note) and Fine Silver (Canadian Silver).