Adding Saturday’s $750,000 Group 1 VRC Turnbull Stakes (2000m) to his Group 1 MRC Underwood Stakes (1800m) victory last start, the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott trained Sir Delius further enhanced his outstanding reputation ahead of an assault on the WS Cox Plate and Melbourne Cup.
This weekend last year saw the son of Frankel was ready to tackle the Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (2400m) in his final European start. 12 months on and he's has raced just four times for three wins and a narrow second and is now the second favourite for the Cox Plate and the favourite for the Melbourne Cup, interestingly deposing Al Riffa (Fr) (Wootton Bassett) at the top of the market, who he had beaten home in the Arc.
Aiming to bounce back off her Makybe Diva third, Via Sistina (IRE) (Fastnet Rock) with James McDonald in the saddle jumped away favourite, just ahead of her Chris Waller trained stablemate Aeliana (NZ) (Castelvecchio).
With Kris Lees’ Adelaide River (IRE) (Australia) taking up the running, Sir Delius was forced to race slightly wide in fourth after coming from the outside barrier of 14.
With Antino (NZ (Redwood) making a mid-race move to round the field to hit the lead just after straightening, jockey Blake Shinn caught a few off guard and left them flat footed as he made his run.
James McDonald started to urge Via Sistina along, who had many lengths to make up, while Craig Williams and Sir Delius were in clear running and had set out after Antino who had hit the lead.
Taking the lead with 100m to run, Sir Delius asserted his superiority to pull away and score by a length and three-quarters from Antino who battled on strongly.
Working home into third was the race favourite Via Sistina, two and a quarter length from the winner with the eye catcher being last start Group 3 Naturalism Stakes winner Half Yours (St Jean) who came from back in the field to finish fourth, and with a significant weight drop leading into the Caulfield Cup, this gelding should be watched.
Half Yours' jockey Jamie Melham said post-race that she was "extremely excited for two weeks’ time with this horse. He’s flying."
Waterhouse was effusive in her praise for Sir Delius post-race.
“He's put on condition. He's relaxed more and whatever he runs in, they're going to have to beat him,” Waterhouse said.
“He's a most exciting horse.
“He had a wide draw, and he (Williams) elected very quickly, which he said to me he might, to come in midfield and then he got caught in a pocket.
“Any lesser jockey would not have got out of, but the waters opened, and he went boom. That was the exciting part, the boom.”
While he knew he needed to overcome the draw, Williams was confident he had the right horse to do so.
“In Group 1 races, you don't think you can win like that, but we were very confident he could do it,” Williams said.
“We had the outside barrier draw. Gai and Adrian were very good about having an open book without too much pressure about riding him.
“I had to use a few carrots to find a spot, but when the chips are down, this horse is a winner.”
Having never run past 2400m, the 3200m of the Melbourne Cup is still an unknown, but with the weight he has been allocated for the race, Williams feels there is no better time to try it.
“I just said you will never have 55.5 kilos in the Melbourne Cup again,” Williams said.
“I worked him during the week at Flemington, and he walked out and he owned the track.
“He owns everything he does and today you saw that attitude. He puts the writing on the wall when under pressure against these top horses, and he's delivering.”
Taking his record to six wins and three placed efforts from 10 starts and $1,504,708 in earnings, Sir Delius topped the 2024 Tattersalls Autumn Horses in Training Sale when purchased by De Burgh Equine, McKeever Bloodstock and Go Bloodstock for 1.3million guineas.
Racing in Sir Owen Glen’s Go Bloodstock silks Sir Delius is a brother to the Listed-winning, multiple Group 2 placed Juan Elcano (Frankel) and a half to the Group 3 winner Nkosikazi (Cape Cross).
The best of five winners from eight to the races from blue-blood Daylami mare Whatami, whose immediate family includes Champion US Turf mare Uni, Sir Delius pedigree traces back to the family of sires Invincible Spirit and Pride Of Dubai.
Sir Delius is one168 global stakes winners for his Champion Sire Frankel which includes 40 individual Group 1 winners, of which four have won in Australia; Sir Delius, Happy Heart, Mirage Dancer and Converge.
