Rocky Racing Review: Tuesday 13 May 2025

TOOWOOMBA TRAINER AND STALLION DUNDEEL SCORE WINNING DOUBLES AT CALLAGHAN PARK

Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner Dundeel sired the winners of two Maiden Handicaps run at Callaghan Park on Tuesday and one of them was heavily back to win its race.

Alfa Dundee completed a double for the NZ-bred stallion when he came from last on the home turn to win the QTIS 3YO Maiden Handicap (1400m).

He was also the first leg of a winning double for Toowoomba trainer Stephen Kirkwood.

“It took him all of the straight to get there,” Kirkwood said, adding that “he just loved the long 600m run home.” Once he was out in the clear he came quickly.”

Ridden by premier rider Justin Stanley Alfa Dundee was backed from $7.00 into $3.00 and his odds were still firming at the jump. Easing early race favourite Badlifedecision (Brooke Johnson) led the race clearly and Alfa Dundee looked to have a mile of work to do when heads turned for home. Stanley started to work forward, and a gap appeared inside the final 300m, and Alfa Dundee just took off. He raced to the lead and withstood a late charge from another fancied runner Remlap Kava (Ash Butler) with Rum Rumble (Ryan Wiggins) who raced prominently, taking third place.

It was Alfa Dundee’s fifth race start and easily his best. A $50,000 yearling at the Magic Millions 2023 March sale, Alfa Dundee had failed to earn a prizemoney cheque at each of his four previous starts. Bred to get over longer distances Alfa Dundee is from the Lohnro mare Mid Air and stems from the same family as the 2024 The Archer winner Namazu. The geldings third dam Cataclysm produced Blue Diamond Stakes winner, Earthquake, the dam of Namazu. Group 1 winner Madame Pommery is also from the same family.

Kirkwood is now likely to search for races over longer distances for Alfa Dundee.

He has a similar plan in mid for five-year-old mare Affinity Flyer. The chestnut took forever to win the BM65 Handicap and jockey Chris McIver told Kirkwood she was really finding the line. Ï reckon she will run a mile,” Kirkwood said. The win was Affinity Flyer’s fourth from 21 race starts. Catalogued for the 2021 Capricornia Yearling Sale at the Rockhampton Showgrounds, Affinity Flyer is by Kobayashi from Feisty Gem, a Sebring mare who failed to earn a cheque at any of its starts. But if you dive deeper into Affinity Flyer’s pedigree there is a few gems to be found. Her granddam, Ruby Draw, is a half-sister to Drawn, a three time- Group 1 winner whose victories included an All Aged Stakes, Rosehill Guineas and Caulfield Guineas.

TOP COMBO KEEP ON WINNING – STANLEY POSTS DOUBLE SUCCESS

Top combination trainer Clinton Taylor and jockey Justin Stanley continued to dominate this year’s premierships, both adding to their tallies at Callaghan Park.

Stanley, who rode Alpha Dundee earlier at the meeting posted a winning double with the Taylor trained Diddly Squat hanging on for a game victory in the Open Handicap (1200m). With Media Empire (Jackson Murphy) and Moenave (Georgina Cartwright mowing him down in the run to the line, Diddly Squat found something right on the line to get the victory. It was a welcome return to the winner’s list for five-year-old by Mikki Isle. The galloper had been consistently in the minor place money since its last win at Callaghan Park which was back in February. Each of its three wins previously were in Victoria.

Taylor and Stanley have commanding leads in the local premierships for 2024-25.

SYDNEY CAST-OFF SCORES PROMISING VICTORY

Dundeel’s Callaghan Park double came up when lightly raced gelding Neptune Legend, a former Sydney-trained galloper won the Maiden Handicap (1100m).

Neptune Legend had its first race last September in Mackay and posted its first success on Tuesday.

Like Alfa Dundee, Neptune Legend was doing his best work at the finish of the race and is screaming out for longer races. Trained by Michael Evans, Neptune Legend was having its seventh race start and keeps on improving. “I haven’t looked past today for him, but I’d say I will step him up to 1400m next,” Evans said.

Ridden by Georgina Cartwright Neptune Legend ($4.20) defeated race favourite Villandry (Gabrielle Semmens) with Purposely (Justin Stanley) in third place.

From Darousha, an unraced daughter of Redoutes Choice bred in France, Neptune Legend is bred in the purple. His grandam, Daryakana was a talented stayer in Hong Kong and won five races there including the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase. His whole maternal pedigree is loaded with international Group race winners.

POWER OF KATIE WINS AGAIN

An impost of 60kg didn’t slow down in-form filly Power Of Katie who rocketed to its sixth victory from 10 race starts in the QTIS 3YO Handicap (1100m).

Part-owner Dare Paine said the ownership group stayed loyal to jockey Warwick Satherley and they were very happy they did. “Why go for an apprentice to reduce the handicap, Warwick is riding so strong, and he knows our filly well,” she said. Satherley parked the John Wigginton-trained Power Of Katie behind frontrunner Kai Mondo (McKenzie Apel) before coming with a well-timed run to win comfortably. Toowoomba gelding Invisible Target (Justin Stanley) was doing its best work at the finish to nose two others out of third place. Yes I’m Ugly (Kelsey Lenton) finished fourth.

SATHERLEY NOTCHES WINNING DOUBLE ON EX-GODOLPHIN RUNNER

With Justin Huxtable taking himself off the jockey list at the Callaghan Park race meeting, Warwick Satherley was one of the beneficiaries of his rides.

Satherley completed a winning double when the Kerrod Smyth-trained Northumbria showed plenty of fight to win the BM55 Handicap (1200m).

He was just finding the 1300 metres at his last couple of starts, a fraction too long, so we switched him back to 1200 and he has bounced back,” Smyth said. It was the Exceed And Excel gelding’s first win since November 2023 where he won at Sydney’s Warwick Farm for Godolphin and James Cummings.

Nothumbria has had 17 unplaced runs between wins with this race his first CQ victory. “It’s certainly been a while,” Smyth said. Northumbria ($5.00) won by ¾ of a length from the Ricky Vale-trained race favourite Determination (McKenzie Apel) with Tim Cook’s longshot Our Heart Throb (Georgina Cartwright) almost 3 lengths away in third place.

The victory boosted Satherley in the jockey rankings to equal third. This season he has ridden 13 winners at Callaghan Park. Justin Stanley has 35, McKenzie Apel 14 and Satherley and Sean Cormack -13.

TOOWOOMBA APPRENTICE GETS FIRST ROCKY WIN IN A HEART STOPPING RACE

Matt Kropp was relieved to see the last favourite of the day, Whatjeudoin’ win the BM58 Handicap (1600m).

It was a heart stopper for those that supported Whatjeudoin who posted its fourth career win. Ridden by 3kg claiming apprentice Kelsey Lenton, Whatjeudoin’ lost its spot coming to the home bend, but Lenton wasn’t phased and waited for a gap to appear in the straight to make her claim.

It was Lenton’s first Rockhampton victory.

Coming from nearly last place Whatjeudoin’ ($2.60 fav.) roared through the opening and arrived in time to get the cash. Milagro, Touchofclass and Uncle Bud all made a race of it to the line but the favourite proved too strong winning by about a neck. Another Toowoomba galloper, Milagro (Jackson Murphy) ran second just over a length in front of the Sunshine Coast galloper Touchofclass (Justin Stanley) and Toowoomba’s Uncle Bud (Raul Silvera-Olivera).

By David Aldred – CEO RJC