Weekend Racing Review: Sircconi shines in Flemington final

Sircconi racing news
The Nick Ryan-trained Sircconi smoked the field to win the Winter Championship Finals at Flemington.

Finals Day at Flemington took centre stage on Saturday, but there was plenty more quality racing action around the country. Let’s look back at the big winners of the weekend just gone.

Win of the weekend: Sircconi

Sircconi absolutely blitzed his rivals in the Winter Championship Final at Flemington on Saturday with a four-length victory over Polly Grey and Victoria Star. It was the five-year-old’s first win since the Group 3 Moonga Stakes in October 2018. Now with Nick Ryan, the Nicconi gelding has struck a purple patch of form, having run second at his last two starts before winning on Saturday. Daniel Stackhouse settled handy to the speed in the run before racing away with 300m to go in a very impressive victory. Sircconi has lined up in three Group 1 races in his career, so we expect connections to target a race like the Toorak or Cantala in the spring.

Cherry Tortoni completes hat-trick at Flemington

Cherry Tortoni made it three from three to kick off his career with an impressive victory over Alcyone in the Taj Rossi Final. The market suggested it would be a race in two and that it was, with the favourite getting the upper hand in the dying stages. Alcyone looked to be the winner at the 200 before Billy Egan produced the Night Of Thunder colt to the middle and moved up on the outside to get the head down when it counted. Both horses look real Derby prospects in the spring and are worth following.

Music Bay found herself back in the winner’s stall for the first time in 15 months with a dominant victory in the Leilani Series Final with a 2.75-length victory over the well-fancied La Tigeresa. Craig Williams produced a brilliant ride on the four-year-old mare, finding leaders back in the run before kicking clear in the straight. La Tigeresa was good from the back of the field to find second, but the race was over far too early on for the favourite. Music Bay now gives Phillip Stokes a number of options heading into the spring carnival.

Walking Flying is airborne at the minute, making it three in a row for the Lindsay Park stable. The filly by Tavistock ran a very good fifth in the South Australian Oaks before putting three wins on the board in consecutive races, with her last two being back at a mile. Jamie Mott may have been the key, having won all three races on her. Mott produced one of the rides of the day, weaving his way through the field to finish home the better of the well-backed Grinzinger Allee and Stretto. Walking Flying now comes to the end of her three-year-old campaign and could be aimed at some rich races for mares over a mile in the spring.

Tailleur impresses with fast finish at Randwick

You will be hard pressed to find a better chasing performance than James Cummings’ Tailleur on Saturday, coming from a mile back to beat Switched right on the post in just her second race start. She was sent around as one of the shortest-priced favourites of the afternoon and was set an almighty task when Tim Clark looked to have pinched it on the market’s second elect. Tailleur got right down to business in the final 200m, clocking 12.14s for that sectional. The pair streeted the rest of the field by over five lengths and will both be horses to follow going forward.

Mr Dependable has been exactly the opposite this campaign, being rolled as a short-priced favourite in his last two starts. The Waterhouse & Bott gelding was sent around as the shortest-priced runner of the day at Randwick and only managed fourth, being beaten five lengths as High Opinion, Matowi and Toryjoy went across the line together. The favourite looked to have a sweet run behind the lead pair but found nothing in the straight. No doubt he has another win in him, but he won’t be getting any of ours anytime soon.

Spaceboy looked to be running on rocket fuel in a win highlighted by sheer speed. The enigmatic gelding has looked like a star for a long time and failed to put it all together, but trainer Gary Portelli looks to have found the key. Pinging the lids from barrier seven, Kathy O’Hara took the gelding to the front and that was all she wrote, booting away on the turn to win by nearly three lengths. As he turns four in August, Spaceboy will no doubt mature into a serious sprinter. Whether 1000m is as far as he will go is yet to be seen, but we would love to see him get a slot in The TAB Everest. He profiles very similarly to the current favourite, Nature Strip.

Handspun found her way back into the winner’s circle with a great win in the Benchmark 78 1300m on Saturday, finishing over the top of Crystal Breeze and Noble Joey by over two lengths. Tommy Berry was last out on the Godolphin mare, but he was helped by the fast tempo to finish through the middle of the pack. The runs came for Handspun and Berry at about the 350m marker and they never looked like being beaten. Seven-year-old Noble Joey was good in defeat, as was outsider of the field, Greenspan, which railed hard to run fourth under Tim Clark and is worth blackbooking.

Star Of Michelin shines again at Eagle Farm

Star Of Michelin was a winner again and will be aimed at the Winx Guineas at the Sunshine Coast this weekend. The $4 favourite had to overcome the outside barrier but was still too good for his rivals, beating the second elect, Amacita, by over a length. It was the fourth win from seven starts at Eagle Farm for the Jet Spur three-year-old, with all his wins coming at the Brisbane track. He should be suited by the big straight at the Sunny Coast next weekend in the Group 3 feature.

Quantico and Euro Belle had to share the prizemoney in the QTIS three-year-old event, just edging out Stuttering in a brilliant finish to the 1200m. Euro Belle looked all but home before the even-money favourite grew wings out wide to make it too hard for the judge to split the pair. We took a set against Quantico going into this run, but John O’Shea’s gelding certainly caught our attention and looks in for a big campaign. Again, the Winx Guineas looks a likely target for the pair.

Jami Lady was ultra-impressive in winning the last race on the card by over two lengths from Fiesta and Pennino. Boris Thornton controlled the race from in front and never looked like being run down. Love You Lucy was the hard luck story in fourth, failing to find a way clear in the straight, and will likely head to the paddock now after a successful winter. As for Jami Lady, if Steven O’Dea opts to back her up this weekend, the Glasshouse Handicap looks a very winnable race at her favourite track.


Topics: AU, Cherry Tortoni, Eagle Farm, featured, Flemington, Randwick, Sirconni, Star Of Michelin

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