Tasmania’s finest thoroughbred of the past two seasons has received another emphatic endorsement, with Geegees Mistruth crowned the state’s Horse of the Year for a second successive year following a campaign highlighted by her breakthrough Gr1 Robert Sangster Stakes triumph at Morphettville. The Tasmanian-owned and bred mare received the major honour at the Tasmanian Thoroughbred Racing Awards at Wrest Point Casino in Hobart, while also collecting the Leading Tasmanian Racemare or Filly title and continuing an extraordinary sequence through the state’s age and open awards. Having previously been recognised as Tasmania’s outstanding two-year-old and three-year-old before securing Horse of the Year honours last season, Geegees Mistruth became the first galloper since Mystic Journey to progress through those categories and then successfully defend the principal title. Her latest recognition followed a season in which success beyond Bass Strait gave Tasmania one of its most significant results in recent years. The daughter of Wordsmith delivered the Geard family’s Geegees operation its first victory at the highest level when prevailing in a blanket finish to the Robert Sangster, having begun her career with Stuart Gandy in Tasmania before transferring to Mark Walker’s Cranbourne stable. As reported by tasracing.com.au, Tasracing chief executive Andrew Jenkins said the annual awards provided an opportunity to recognise the horses and participants underpinning the state’s industry and reflect upon their dedication and achievements. Geegees Mistruth was far from the only notable name celebrated during a night combining the current season’s honours with recognition of some of Tasmanian racing’s most distinguished performers and participants. John Blacker was named Leading Trainer and Erica Byrne Burke Leading Jockey, while Aristopolos secured Two-Year-Old of the Year and Sanniya was rewarded as Three-Year-Old of the Year after a season that included victories against older horses in the Gr3 Mystic Journey Stakes and Gr3 Vamos Stakes. Stratosphere collected the Leading Tasmanian-Based Juvenile Sire award, Needs Further was recognised as Leading Tasmanian-Based Sire and Miss Mana received Broodmare of the Year honours. The evening also carried a strong historical dimension, with accomplished gallopers The Inevitable and Hellova Street inducted into the Tasmanian Racing Hall of Fame alongside former race caller Colin McNiff and jockey Harold Coutts, while multiple Gr1-winning rider Craig Newitt was elevated to Legend status. Against that distinguished backdrop, however, Geegees Mistruth again occupied centre stage, her second consecutive Horse of the Year crown confirming a remarkable journey from unbeaten young Tasmanian prospect to mainland Gr1 winner and flagbearer for her home state.
Vinery’s Young Talent Makes Early Impact
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
With the first Sydney juvenile trials of the season often providing an early glimpse of what lies ahead, Vinery had every reason to come away from Kensington encouraged after its sires and sale graduates made a strong statement. Vinery-linked youngsters accounted for almost 10 per cent of the 55 two-year-olds to step out on the morning, reinforcing the farm’s standing as a major source of racetrack talent, while Ole Kirk also enjoyed a particularly notable showing by equalling champion sire Zoustar for the most runners represented. Among the standout performers was the Exceedance filly She’s Supreme, who stepped out after two jump-outs and returned the equal-fastest time of the session as well as the quickest time of any filly, putting a race such as the Gr3 Gimcrack Stakes firmly into calculations for trainer Marc Conners. Purchased from Vinery Stud’s Inglis Classic draft earlier this year, She’s Supreme is out of the winning Pierro mare Absolemm, a half-sister to Gr2 winner Glenfiddich, and Conners made it clear there is more to come from the youngster, noting she was still learning her craft despite showing plenty of natural ability. Vinery’s influence was also strongly felt through champion first season sire Ole Kirk, whose daughter Shraddha turned heads with an impressive trial win under Tommy Berry for Michael Freedman. Freedman revealed Berry had jumped the filly out 10 days earlier and was keen to ride her again, and while Shraddha remained green and was still taking everything in, he was full of praise for the way she handled herself, saying the well-made filly had a nice future ahead of her. A $250,000 purchase by Michael Freedman and Andrew Williams Bloodstock from Vinery’s Magic Millions Gold Coast Sale draft, Shraddha is out of Spicy and hails from the family of sharp black-type juvenile Paprika, while the page is set to deepen further with Spicy’s exceptional yearling half-sister by Hawaii Five Oh to be offered in 2027. In another positive for the farm, Spicy will also return to Vinery this season to visit new sire Tropicus, keeping the family firmly within the Vinery fold. The farm’s strength was not confined to emerging juveniles either, with Vinery graduates Sepals and Regal Award finishing second and third respectively in the Gr1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes over the weekend. From the first two-year-old trials of the season through to elite-level competition, the latest results provided another timely reminder that Vinery’s imprint continues to be felt across every tier of the racing landscape.
Glittering Frankel Story Beckons Hollywood
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
Racing’s uneasy relationship with the cinema could be poised for another major chapter amid renewed reports that Frankel’s extraordinary unbeaten career and his association with Sir Henry Cecil may receive the big-screen treatment, although the prospect has also revived debate over which of the sport’s great stories Hollywood should tell next. Frankel offers material extending far beyond a simple catalogue of victories: 14 starts produced 14 wins, including ten at Gr1 level, while his official rating of 140 and performances such as his 11-length Queen Anne Stakes demolition established him among the defining thoroughbreds of the modern era. Yet the emotional dimension of the story rests just as strongly with Cecil, the revered trainer who had returned from a difficult period professionally and was seriously ill during the later stages of Frankel’s career. That combination of an exceptional horse and a compelling human narrative is precisely what can transform racing from sporting biography into broader drama. Writing in racingpost.com, Chris Cook noted that reader Andrew Evzona had another candidate altogether, questioning why Frankel should reach the cinema before Arkle. The discussion inevitably recalls Seabiscuit, released more than two decades ago and nominated for seven Academy Awards, whose appeal stretched beyond racing because the horse’s struggles and resurgence were framed against Depression-era America. By comparison, the later Secretariat film had magnificent equine material but followed a more conventional champion’s narrative, illustrating the difficulty of translating greatness alone into compelling cinema. Arkle presents possibilities of a different kind. His emergence under Tom Dreaper could be framed through the Anglo-Irish rivalry with Fulke Walwyn and mighty Mill House, who defeated Arkle in the 1963 Hennessy before the Irish star turned the tables in the following year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup and began establishing his legend. Another storyline lies within Dreaper’s own stable, where Arkle shared quarters with the formidable Flyingbolt. The tantalising question of which was superior was never conclusively answered, despite the pair once schooling together, while Flyingbolt’s subsequent illness denied racing the prospect of a definitive confrontation. Red Rum offers yet another ready-made screenplay through his extraordinary Grand National sequence, combining early triumph, later defeats and the celebrated final victory of 1977. Frankel nevertheless possesses something particularly suited to cinema: perfection on the racecourse intertwined with Cecil’s final great chapter. Whether the reported project reaches production remains uncertain, but racing hardly lacks the characters, rivalry, jeopardy and emotion required to fill a screen.
Sunday Spotlight Returns To Victoria
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
A rare Sunday Group 1 program will give Victorian racing a different complexion this weekend when the Manikato Stakes headlines a substantial Caulfield card, marking the first time in four years that the state has staged elite-level racing on a Sunday. The scheduling is a consequence of Moonee Valley being unavailable and the need to avoid a collision with Saturday’s AFL Grand Final, but the unusual slot also revives a format that has produced some memorable spring performances. As racing.com noted in outlining the weekend agenda, Sunday Group 1 racing in Victoria has been uncommon in recent seasons, although its relatively brief modern history includes several striking results. Black Heart Bart produced one of the great upsets when winning the 2019 Underwood Stakes at $101 while Alligator Blood landed the same race in 2022 at $8 after I’m Thunderstruck and Zaaki had dominated betting. Hartnell’s emphatic 2016 Turnbull Stakes success at Flemington was another Sunday highlight, the Godolphin gelding defeating subsequent Caulfield Cup heroine Jameka. This weekend’s supporting program gives the meeting significance well beyond the Manikato itself. The Gr2 Stutt Stakes over 1600 metres remains an established stepping stone towards the Caulfield Guineas, a pathway demonstrated as recently as 2023 when Griff completed the double despite starting at $31 in the Guineas. Pride Of Jenni supplies another major attraction in the Gr2 Feehan Stakes over 1600 metres as she attempts to win the race for a third consecutive year, although this time the assignment comes at Caulfield rather than Moonee Valley. The venue itself is hardly unfamiliar territory, with Pride Of Jenni having produced one of her most celebrated front-running displays there when collecting the $2 million All-Star Mile. The Gr3 JRA Cup over 2040 metres also assumes additional importance after being moved from its customary Cox Plate-eve position, particularly for horses attempting to satisfy the Caulfield Cup’s first ballot clause. Away from Caulfield, Mornington takes its traditional AFL Grand Final-day position on Saturday, where the Listed Ansett Classic over 2400 metres has developed an impressive record as a spring staying guide: Whisky On The Hill, Herman Hesse, Saracen Knight and Lunar Flare are among recent winners who subsequently collected another feature staying prize during the same spring. It will be a big weekend of sport in Australia: the Gr1 Golden Rose meeting in Sydney overlaps with the AFL Grand Final, followed by Sunday's Manikato meeting and then the Wallabies versus the Springboks in Perth.
Proverb Stamps Breeders’ Plate Passport
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
An impressive change of gear rather than a polished beginning was the feature of Proverb’s first official public examination at Randwick, with the expensive Written Tycoon colt giving trainer Michael Freedman and syndicator James Harron another potential Breeders’ Plate contender. The $700,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale purchase won the opening 850-metre two-year-old trial on the Kensington circuit in 50.25 seconds, overcoming an awkward beginning before Tim Clark allowed him to settle behind the speed and produce his strongest work when clear room appeared late. Proverb swept through to defeat Chris Waller’s Home Affairs colt Internal Security by a narrow margin, with Peter Snowden’s Capitalist colt Ocean Veil third, and the manner of the performance was arguably more instructive than the winning margin. Rather than enjoying an uncomplicated experience in front, the youngster was required to cope with traffic, settle and then accelerate, valuable lessons should connections elect to send him to the Gr3 Breeders’ Plate over 1000 metres at Randwick. According to punters.com.au, Freedman and Harron are considering precisely that route, one carrying an obvious resonance after the pair combined to win last season’s Breeders’ Plate with Incognito. Proverb remains inexperienced, but his pedigree and price ensured he arrived at the official juvenile trials with considerable expectations. By champion stallion Written Tycoon, he is the second foal of imported No Nay Never mare Shines Her Light and was offered by Yulong before being secured by the James Harron Bloodstock Colt Partnership and Tony Fung Colts. Shines Her Light is a half-sister to Gr1 winner Ventura Storm, whose Australian career included victory in the Gr2 Moonee Valley Cup, providing Proverb with an intriguing blend of precocious speed and deeper-distance quality on the maternal side. His trial was not the fastest of Monday morning – several later heats were run considerably quicker as conditions improved – but raw time told only part of the story. Proverb was asked to solve a problem after his beginning, remained composed behind horses and responded sharply when Clark found daylight, attributes likely to prove valuable when the pressure increases on race day. The early juvenile program offers little time for prolonged education, with the Breeders’ Plate and its fillies’ counterpart, the Gr3 Gimcrack Stakes, rapidly approaching, and Freedman appears to have several promising youngsters emerging at the right time. For Proverb, the immediate question is simply whether he absorbs the experience and progresses sufficiently to take his place on Epsom Day. His first official trial supplied no guarantee of what lies ahead, but it did provide Harron and Freedman with an encouraging opening answer.
$700,000 secured Proverb at the Gold Coast (pic: magicmillions.com.au)
Bargain Buy Chases Home-Town Prize
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
A modest $4,500 outlay could deliver one of the most satisfying victories of Troy Pascoe’s training career when progressive three-year-old High Prophet tackles Saturday’s $100,000 Toowoomba Guineas over 1200 metres on his home circuit. Bought by Pascoe from the Lucas Bloodstock draft at the 2025 Magic Millions Capricornia Yearling Sale, the gelding has already made his purchase price look remarkably inexpensive, building a record of two wins and a placing from his first three appearances and heading into the Guineas after announcing himself in metropolitan company at Doomben. That latest performance was particularly encouraging, High Prophet carrying 54.5 kilograms under Jake Bayliss and defeating Huggie by 1.3 lengths over 1110 metres on September 12 after settling off the early speed. He started at $8 and stopped the clock at 1:04.48, with Iransofar another 0.2 lengths away in third, providing Pascoe with compelling evidence that his inexpensive acquisition belongs in stronger company. The gelding’s rise is central to a classic racing story highlighted by racenet.com.au: a relatively cheap yearling attempting to turn a small initial investment into victory in a valuable feature on the trainer’s own doorstep. High Prophet is by Caulfield Guineas winner Divine Prophet from the High Chaparral mare High Adversity, and his early record suggests the price attached to him in the sales ring has had little relationship to his capacity on the track. His education began with a Toowoomba Inner Track barrier trial in March, when he finished third over 925 metres, before quickly establishing a race record that now reads 1-3-1. The Doomben victory also demonstrated a degree of versatility, with High Prophet able to settle behind runners before finishing strongly rather than requiring an uncontested position near the lead. Saturday presents another examination, with a dozen horses nominated for the Toowoomba Guineas, including Apostle, Cause She Can, Iransofar, Magritte, O’Reillys Flight, Swift Dragon, Toscanella and Watchman. For Pascoe, however, the appeal goes considerably deeper than the prizemoney. Based at Newtown and long associated with racing on the Darling Downs, he learned his craft under legendary Toowoomba horseman Jim Atkins, serving as his foreman after arriving in the city determined to work for the Hall of Fame trainer. A feature victory at Clifford Park with a gelding purchased for little more than loose change by modern yearling-sale standards would therefore carry a particularly appropriate sense of homecoming. High Prophet is by Champion Sire Proisir's Gr1 Caulfield Guines-winning full-brother Divine Prophet.
Little Paradise Sets HKJC Mile Course
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
A more mature and settled version of one of Hong Kong’s most exciting gallopers will begin a campaign aimed squarely at December’s Hong Kong Mile when Little Paradise resumes in Sunday’s HK$4.2 million Gr3 Celebration Cup over 1400 metres at Sha Tin. Trainer Jimmy Ting believes the five-year-old has benefited both mentally and physically from his break after a four-year-old season in which flashes of exceptional ability were occasionally accompanied by difficult passages and questions over his optimum distance. Little Paradise finished that campaign by emphatically answering at least one of those questions, defeating established Gr1 performer Galaxy Patch in the Gr3 Premier Cup over Sunday’s course and distance in June to record his seventh victory from 13 starts. Earlier, the son of Toronado had produced perhaps his most striking performance when overcoming significant traffic problems to capture February’s Hong Kong Classic Mile, bursting through late after being held up from the 400 metres until near the 200 metres. His subsequent Classic campaign proved less rewarding, with an eighth behind Stormy Grove over 1800 metres before the Hong Kong Derby’s 2000 metres stretched his stamina beyond its most effective range. A return to the elite mile division then brought another luckless passage when 10th behind My Wish in the Gr1 Champions Mile. Ting told scmp.com that Little Paradise had enjoyed time at Conghua and in the paddock during his break, and while the gelding is not yet at his peak, his trainer believes two trials have brought him sufficiently forward for the opening phase of the season. Importantly, Ting also considers him calmer while his body weight remains around the level at which he performs best. Zac Purton takes the mount on Sunday after partnering Little Paradise when he was narrowly beaten in his latest dirt trial at Sha Tin, and the champion jockey will have the opportunity to assess where he sits ahead of the major mile lead-ups. Ting has mapped out a deliberately focused program, with the Gr2 Sha Tin Trophy over 1600 metres on October 19 and Gr2 BOCHK Private Wealth Jockey Club Mile on November 22 pencilled in before the Hong Kong Mile. The Celebration Cup will provide an immediate examination against accomplished opposition, with Hong Kong Derby winner Invincible Ibis joined by Helios Express, Galaxy Patch, Patch Of Theta, Copartner Prance, Stormy Grove, Lucky With You and Soleil Fighter. Little Paradise has already demonstrated the acceleration required to trouble high-class rivals; the task now is to convert that talent into sustained performance at the highest level.
Cosmic One Extends Winning Sequence
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
Four consecutive victories have carried Cosmic One from promising South Australian galloper to a horse whose trainer Travis Doudle is now prepared to test him away from home during the carnival, with the gelding again proving too strong at Morphettville despite being burdened with 61 kilograms. Ben Price was entrusted with navigating the latest assignment and justified Doudle’s confidence, producing a composed ride from an outside barrier as Cosmic One maintained his unbeaten sequence with another authoritative performance. Doudle described the horse as talented and emphasised that his work leading into the race had been faultless, while the trainer was unconcerned by the wide draw and credited Price with executing the task superbly. The intention now is to travel with Cosmic One during the carnival, a significant progression for a horse whose four-race winning streak has earned the opportunity to discover where his ceiling lies. His victory formed the headline act of a varied Morphettville Parks program examined by racingsa.com.au, but several other emerging gallopers also strengthened their future prospects. Andrew Gluyas-trained four-year-old Dirty Old Town returned to winning form at her second appearance of the preparation, defeating the talented Shady Thinker and showing the improvement Gluyas had hoped to see after her spell. She had risen quickly through the grades during her previous campaign, stringing together three consecutive victories before finishing third in the Listed Morphettville Guineas, and her latest performance suggested another step through the ranks may be within reach. Gluyas believes the daughter of Dirty Work has furnished further, although her undemonstrative trackwork makes her difficult to assess away from race day. Former Queensland filly Diversity also made an immediate impression for Jess Tzaferis, winning first-up under Jacob Opperman and prompting her trainer to identify longer-term ambitions. Tzaferis regards the mare as a progressive type capable of developing into a useful miler, with next year’s Murray Bridge Cup floated as a possible target, while the victory also delivered an important result for her MyRacehorse ownership group. Interstate stables enjoyed their share of the afternoon as well. Jason Warren and Todd Pannell combined with Chicago Blues in the opener, Tennessee Spirit provided Toby Lake with his first metropolitan training success when scoring by 2.74 lengths under Jordyn Weatherley, the Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr-trained Giggenbach prevailed over 1950 metres and Matt Jenkins prepared Prestige Zerprise to win under Kayla Crowther. Yet Cosmic One supplied the defining performance, conceding weight without surrendering his winning habit and giving Doudle every reason to seek stronger company beyond South Australia.
Jenni Chasing Historic Feehan Treble
Wednesday, 23rd September 2026
Age appears to have done remarkably little to diminish one of Australian racing’s most compelling performers, with Pride Of Jenni preparing to launch what could be the final spring campaign of her career by attempting an unprecedented personal hat-trick in Sunday’s Gr2 Feehan Stakes over 1600 metres at Caulfield. Now nine and with 48 starts behind her, the four-time Gr1 winner has given Ciaron Maher’s team every indication that the qualities which transformed her into one of the country’s most spectacular front-runners remain intact. Her preparation has included two Cranbourne jumpouts, beginning with a fourth behind Jigsaw over 800 metres on August 31 before she dominated a 1200-metre heat on September 14. Maher’s national assistant trainer Jack Turnbull told racingnews.co.nz that the latter may have been the finest jumpout the stable has seen from the mare and described her as being in an exceptionally good place heading into her return. There has also been a notable evolution in her temperament. Once fierce in her work and considerably more demanding to train, Pride Of Jenni has mellowed with maturity, understands what is required of her and is consequently easier for the stable to manage, although none of that appears to have blunted the competitive intensity that has defined her career. Sunday provides an appropriately familiar starting point. She defeated Mr Brightside to capture the Feehan in 2024 before returning to win the race again in 2025, when Treasurethe Moment finished second, and her old rival could again be waiting at Caulfield provided Lindsay Park is satisfied the surface is not too firm. The venue represents the major difference this year, with the Feehan transferred from its traditional Moonee Valley home while that course is unavailable. Pride Of Jenni nevertheless has ample evidence of her effectiveness at Caulfield, most memorably through her devastating front-running All-Star Mile victory there in 2024. Beyond Sunday, another familiar prize provides the principal spring objective. The Gr1 Empire Rose Stakes over 1600 metres at Flemington on October 31 is again firmly in the picture after Pride Of Jenni captured the race in both 2023 and 2025, while earlier planning had left connections with several other elite-level options depending upon her performances. There is, however, an unavoidable poignancy accompanying this preparation. Turnbull acknowledged that the stable does not know how many appearances remain before retirement and intends to appreciate each one. After more than $12 million in earnings and a career built around audacious performances rather than longevity alone, Pride Of Jenni has already travelled far beyond ordinary expectations. A third Feehan would provide another fitting distinction, but for those closest to her, this spring is increasingly about enjoying the remarkable mare while she is still there to be enjoyed.
A Feehan treble is possible for Pride of Jenni (pic: Mark Gatt)
