Smith eyes winning charge from ex-Hong Kong sprinter at Randwick
It has been a long and frustrating run for trainer Matt Smith with Beauty Charge, but he hopes the stars will align for him at Randwick on Saturday.
By Craig Kerry
January 2, 2026 — 4.08pm
Warwick Farm trainer Matt Smith was stumped when he couldn’t get Beauty Charge, a five-time winner in Hong Kong, to even trial well when he first came to his stable.
Now he says the seven-year-old “works like a stakes horse every day of the week”.
Beauty Charge, carrying the pink, white and black colours, finishes second on debut in Australia in October at Randwick.Credit: Getty Images
That has yet to translate to a win across four starts in Australia, but Smith hopes a drop in grade, rise in distance and a handy draw will change all that at Randwick on Saturday.
Beauty Charge will chase an overdue win the 1400m benchmark 88 handicap, the eighth on the program.
The Great Britain-bred sprinter bled and failed to finish in his final Hong Kong start in December 2024. After a 31-week spell, Smith trialled the veteran four times before he debuted with a half-length second to Disneck at Randwick in a benchmark 94 on October 4 over 1200m.
Since then, he has finished well back in the $2 million Sydney Stakes at Randwick and $1 million Meteorite at Cranbourne, before a one and a half-length sixth in the listed Razor Sharp, all over 1200m.
Smith said senior jockeys Craig Williams and Kerrin McEvoy recommended taking Beauty Charge up to 1400m and he was hoping the move and drop in grade would help break his drought. Another senior hoop, Nash Rawiller, rides the $7.50 (TAB) chance from gate two on Saturday.
“The horse was in bad shape when we got it,” Smith said.
“It was in a bad frame of mind and it took forever to get it going, even to trial well. Then all of a sudden it was happy and away it went.
“I was going to the races first up thinking it would win. It was working that good, I was thinking this is a stakes horse every day of the week, so I was happy with the run but disappointed he didn’t win.
Warwick Farm trainer Matthew Smith.Credit: Getty Images
“He can definitely go better than where he’s at. I’m a bit disappointed looking at his form, the way it’s all turned out.
