There is no shortage of horses with Victorian breeding links that are vying for a ticket into the second edition of the $5 million weight-for-age All Star Mile at Caulfield on March 14.
The inaugural 1600m race was won last year by raider Mystic Journey and again interest is skyrocketing with public voting to decide 10 of the 15 runners, while the winners of the Futurity Stakes and the Blamey Stakes earn ballot free entry.
Up to five wildcards can be used to complete the field. Entries for the race closed on January 9, while the top 10 vote-getters will be announced on Thursday, February 20. The wild card entries will be named on Monday, March 2.
A total of 93 eligible horses were originally entered but attrition continues to claim a few in the world’s richest mile race which last year recorded more than 140,000 Australian votes. New Zealanders have been welcomed into this year’s race.
Racing Victoria’s general manager of racing, Greg Carpenter, said 5000 public votes were needed last year to win a spot in the race.
He said the most prominent Victorian bred horse on the order of voting is currently Heart of Puissance.
“Last year you had to get 5000 votes, at least, to get in and we are expecting to get as many votes as last year, particularly with New Zealand now coming on board,” Carpenter said.
“And what we have seen in the first week of voting is clever campaigns to get horses voted in and obviously Star Missile has done that and I think the composition of the top 10 could change very rapidly and dramatically in the last week of voting.
“But last year most of the horses up near the top throughout stayed there and there were just a couple of horses like Alizee and Balf’s Choice that all of a sudden got going late.”
Carpenter said the Victorian-bred Gold Fields was on the border and would have to hold off horses like Mystic Journey and Dalasan to make it.
He said wild cards would go to the winner of the Futurity Stakes and the Blamey Stakes but if a horse in the top 10 of the voting won either of those races it would potentially provide another one or two discretionary wild cards.
“We would very much be looking at the Guineas winner going in, if it isn’t already in, but I would have to say that it’s going to be the greatest Guineas of all time,” Carpenter said.
The live leader board shows that Alligator Blood (5,923 votes so far), Star Missile (5,899) and Melody Belle (3,725) are certainly guaranteed starts.
Star Missile has 800 owners through syndicator Shelley Hancox and will go close to finishing at the top of the voting.
Of the Victorian bred or sired horses in the race, the Ciaron Maher and David Eustace trained Heart of Puissance is leading the local voting with 2,298 votes to be in fifth place overall.
The gelding by Swettenham Stud stallion Puissance de Lune has had three starts for two wins and his only defeat was a close second in the Group 2 Sandown Guineas (1600m). He is out of Group 1 winner Show a Heart and is Victorian bred.
Mr Quickie, trained at Pakenham by Philip Stokes, is ranked seventh in the voting with 1,841 votes.
Bred by Rosemont Stud, The Group 1 winner has several high profile owners, including Peter Moody, Rosemont Stud and Wylie Dalziel Roy Higgins Racing. Rosemont Stud bred Mr Quickie and now stand his sire, Shamus Award.
Gold Fields, trained by Logan McGill, is another Victorian bred horse who just makes the top ten in the public voting with 1504 votes. A veteran at seven years, Gold Fields is by former Victorian stallion Churchill Downs, out of Gold Delta.
He has won 11 of his 48 starts and collected $649,365 in prize money. He finished third in the Bairnsdale Cup last October and then won the Sale Cup at his next start and then the Group 3 Sandown Stakes in November.
Free of Debt trials Gold Fields by fewer than 100 votes in 11 th position in the public voting. Bred by Greta West, the colt is by Unencumbered.
Currently sitting at 22 in the voting, Cliff’s Edge holds an 11 vote lead on the Robbie Griffiths trained Fidelia which is a Victorian bred mare.
Admiral’s Joker, bred and owned by Seymour committee member Frank Butler, has attracted 402 votes to be ranked 28 in the voting. He is a very capable galloper, winning the Seymour Cup (1600m), but needs the public to get around him and vote to see him start in the race.
Sitting in 12 th spot in the voting is Galaxy Raider. The gelding is by Hard Spun and is a home bred for Sonia Carboni at Glen Eden Stud. The seven-year-old gelding hadn’t won since April 17, 2018, before breaking through with a win at his last outing on January 11 over 1600m at Flemington.
Blue Gum Farm’s Victorian stallion Turffontein is represented by Mandela Effect for Tasmanian trainer Scott Brunton. The gelding sits in 15 th position with 1084 votes but needs more support from voters in Tassie and Victoria.
The Lindsey Smith trained and Victorian-bred Scales of Justice has picked up only 257 votes, but the seven year-old gelding again put his names up in lights at Moonee Valley last Friday night when he beat favourite, Hey Doc, in the Group 2 Australia Stakes (1200m).
Sitting in No. 36 on the ladder, the racing folk of Warrnambool are asked to rally around the galloper who has won more than $2 million in prize money.
The often maligned So Si Bon just sits below Scales of Justice with 250 votes.
Trained by the Hayes and Dabernig team, So Si Bon has been a vastly improved galloper since being gelded. So Si Bon was bred by Morning Rise Stud.
All Star Mile hopefuls Alizee and Anjana are by Darley Northwood sire Sepoy, while Banquo is by Woodside Park stallion, Written Tycoon.
Other Victorian bred or sired All Star Mile candidates include:
Barbie’s Fox (Sired by Foxwedge and bred by Payla Bloodstock).
Flit (Darley bred)
Kubrick (Two Bays Farm)
Noble Boy (Bon Hoffa)
Pretty Brazen (Brazen Beau)
Redouble (Macedon Park)
Ringerdingding (Three Bridges)
Southbank (Morning Rise Stud)
The Party Girl (Musk Creek Farm)
*VOTES, which are continually being updated, were correct as of 28 January 2020. To vote go to:
www.allstarmile.com.au/vote
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