First run in 2006 as a Listed race, the Group II ATC Run to the Rose (1200m) has emerged as one of the most important early spring races for three year-olds and is a pivotal stepping stone to Group I success going forward.
A quality field of 10 will run this year including the first two home in the Golden Slipper in Fireburn and Best of Bordeaux, while untapped So You Think colt Political Debate has the ex factor, so stay tuned on Saturday as we find out a lot more about these horses and what they can do, rather than what they have done.
Past history of the race suggests the cream of the crop will rise for the Rose!
Over the past 10 years, the race has been won by some luminaries starting with Pierro in 2012.
The undefeated champion 2YO the season before having won the Triple Crown, Pierro was too good for Your Song and Epaulette, who both went on to win Group I races with All Too Hard finishing fifth and going on to win the Caulfield Guineas two starts later before running second in the Cox Plate. All Too Hard won three more Group I races in the autumn and retired to stud as the Champion 3YO Colt of that year.
2013 produced a blow out result with 30-1 pop Va Pensiero taking the win over Dissident, who won the Group I Randwick Guineas in the autumn and was then Australian Horse of the Year in 2015 at four.
Zoustar was a close fourth and won the Group I Golden Rose at his next start and the Group I VRC Coolmore Stud Stakes after that, while at the tail of the field was Criterion, who was second in the Group I ATC Spring Champion Stakes and returned in the autumn to win bot the Group I Rosehill Guineas and Australian Derby. Criterion later placed in a Melbourne Cup and won over $7million in prizemoney.
2014 was one of the weaker years, but the winner Hallowed Crown duly won the Golden Rose and the Randwick Guineas in the autumn.
2015 was elite and vintage with only five runners, but all would ultimately become Group I winners with Exosphere winning ahead of Press Statement, Holler, Japonisme and Redzel, who would later make history winning the first two runnings of the Everest and retiring with earnings of $16million.
2016 produced another winner for Godolphin with Astern saluting and then backing up to win the Golden Rose. Runner-up Star Turn tried hard to win a Group I, placing in four of them after winning the G2 Schillaci Stakes, while third place-getter Impending went on to win the G1 Stradbroke Handicap and Kingsford Smith Cup.
2017 was won in brilliant fashion by Menari, but we never got to see what he really had to offer as he suffered an injury after finishing third in the Golden Rose and never raced again. In fourth place was popular Lonhro galloper Kementari, who went on to win the Randwick Guineas and over $2.6million.
2018 delivered a win for a first crop son of Zoustar in Lean Mean Machine, who beat subsequent $1.3 million earner Graff and Jonker, who would go on to win over $2million and claim a G1 win in the MVRC Manikato Stakes as a 6YO. In fourth place was Zousain, who went painfully close to winning a G1 at his next two starts going down by a head to The Autumn Sun in the Golden Rose and by a head to Sunlight in the Coolmore Stud Stakes.
2019 was another Godolphin success with Bivouac defeating subsequent Everest winner Yes Yes Yes with Exceedance, who then won the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes, in third place. Bivouac backed up to win the Golden Rose and later won two more Group I races retiring with $5.6million in the bank.
2020 was the year of Rothfire, who returned to top form last Saturday in Melbourne and looks set for his best ever season with runner-up Ole Kirk going on to win the Golden Rose and Caulfield Guineas.
Last year in 2021, the mighty Anamoe prevailed to win over In the Congo, who would turn the tables on him in the Golden Rose two weeks later. Back in the field was Converge, who would go on to win the Randwick Guineas in the autumn. Anamoe has gone from strength to strength and is favourite to win this year’s Cox Plate.
