Zac Lloyd brushed aside talk of the Sydney premiership and said he was just focused on keeping his hot streak going after extending his title lead with a treble at Randwick on Saturday.
Lloyd went to 40 city winners, five clear of Tommy Berry and six in front nine-time champion James McDonald, with five months gone in the season. McDonald, who rode in his native New Zealand on Saturday after a stint in Hong Kong, is set to return to Sydney racing on Wednesday.
Zac Lloyd after winning narrowly on Countyourblessings.Credit: Getty Images
All three will then turn their focus to the Magic Millions carnival for the next two Saturdays.
McDonald remains a firm favourite to rack up an eighth consecutive Sydney premiership, but Lloyd continues to stamp his claim as the heir apparent.
“Just keep going, just try to keep winning, we’ll worry about it later,” Lloyd said of the premiership.
Lloyd won on Saturday with the well-fancied Paul Messara and Leah Gavranich-trained Mount Bona ($2.80) in the Highway Handicap and Annabel and Rob Archibald’s Alabama Fox ($1.85) in the 1500m benchmark 78 handicap before a thrilling victory aboard Countyourblessings in the 1200m benchmark 88.
Countyourblessings, on the far right, edges out Dollar Magic.Credit: Getty Images
Scott Singleton-trained favourite Dollar Magic looked home before Lloyd swooped on Countyourblessings to get short-head win on the line.
A bob of the head proved the difference for the John O’Shea and Tom Charlton-trained mare, which broke a 15-month drought. It meant a 15th runner-up effort in 34 starts for Dollar Magic.
“When you’re in form, you get those bobs, when you’re not winning, you don’t get those bobs,” Lloyd said.
“That was a fortunate win because I didn’t think I’d won, so it was a good win.”
Bridge crossed to Classic start
Trainer Adrian Bott believed an unplaced debut run at Flemington was a key to Knightsbridge winning at Randwick on Saturday and joining his stable’s strong Magic Millions Classic team.
The Farnan colt, a $750,000 Magic Millions buy, led then faded to finish fifth in the listed Maribyrnong Trial Stakes (1000m) on October 4 and was a $3.20 favourite to bounce back on Saturday.
Adam Hyeronimus put Knightsbridge in the one-one in Saturday’s two-year-old maiden (1000m) before he ran down Thyme To Go for a one-length win and all but secure his place in the $3 million MM Classic (1200m) on the Gold Coast on January 17.
Knightsbridge firmed from $26 to join stablemates Shiki and By Choice at $15 with TAB for the Classic. Those fillies will race next Saturday in the Magic Millions Gold Pearl before potentially backing up in the Classic. Lumbini, second to Bjorn Baker-trained Classic favourite Warwoven at Eagle Farm on Saturday, was Bott and Gai Waterhouse’s other contender. She was out to $8.
Adam Hyeronimus wins on Knightsbridge at Randwick on Saturday.Credit: Getty Images
Bott believed the trip Melbourne helped Knightsbridge fire on Saturday.
“He’s always been a very well-seasoned horse and very professional, a great attitude, but the way he’s been since he’s come back, he’s just more mature mentally,” Bott said.
“You can do anything with him in the race. He’s very professional and that’s what probably won him the race.
“The raced worked out perfectly for him today, but he can lead up. He’s got the speed to do anything. He jumped cleanly today, he was able to come back nicely and switch off. No doubt going away has helped him grow up mentally.
“He’s probably a horse we want to try and see a bit more of in the autumn as well.”
UK teen rides ups and downs
Visiting UK apprentice Jack Callan finished with a first Australian win after a roller-coaster day at Randwick.
The 18-year-old son of group 1-winning jockey Neil Callan is in Australia with the Annabel and Rob Archibald stable for two months and had three rides on Saturday.
With just his fifth ride Down Under, he took Eye Of The Fire to a one-length victory in the 1100m benchmark 1100m for the Archibalds.
“It’s obviously very, very different, the track work and the racing, but we are settling in nicely and that’s a good step in the right direction,” Callan said.
Callan was earlier questioned about his ride on Richard Litt-trained Romeo’s Choice, which was stuck forward three wide without cover before finishing second last in the race won by Countyourblessings.
Sam Clipperton was suspended for his winning ride on Richard and Will Freedman-trained Miss Spacegirl a race earlier. Clipperton was outed for three meetings, cut from seven, for shifting in late on Ash Morgan’s mount, Vienna Vixen.
Patience pays off with Chevalier’s star
Hawkesbury trainer Marc Chevalier was rewarded for giving Everyone’s A Star another chance when the six-year-old mare dominated the Midway Handicap at Randwick as a $31 chance, ending a 21-month drought.
Second up off a third at Hawkesbury, Everyone’s A Star swept to the lead at the 200m mark of the benchmark 72 handicap (1100m) on Saturday under Tyler Schiller and surged to a two-length win over favourite Spice Baby.
It was Chevalier and the mare’s first city winner since she saluted at Rosehill on April 27, 2024 in a Midway. She failed to threaten in her next 15 starts before Chevalier sent for a three-month break to recover from feet problems.
Chevalier, who had just two winners last season, said it was a 50-50 call to race Everyone’s A Star on or send her to the broodmare barn.
The easy victory surprised Chevalier, who had been happy with Everyone’s A Star but thought she needed another run.
Derby on radar for Hereward
Veteran Rosehill trainer David Payne will give promising stayer Hereward time to mature mentally for a shot at the Queensland Derby in May after he scored back-to-back wins on Saturday.
The Saxon Warrior gelding, a $6.50 chance, raced just behind leader and favourite Steel Strike under apprentice Anna Roper before taking the inside run to beat I Am Carrot by one and a half lengths in the 1600m benchmark 72 handicap for three- and four-year-olds.
The win followed a 1550m maiden victory at Canterbury and came at his sixth start.
Payne said “we just had to get him to settle” and the horse was always “above-average”.
He said Hereward would go for a break and the group 1 Queensland Derby (2500m) was a likely target race next preparation.
“I’ll let him just get his mind right, he’s a bit of a handful,” Payne said.
