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Vandeek Gets Another Big Catalogue Page Boost
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
A Classic result at The Curragh has given Arrowfield Stud a timely and internationally relevant boost for Vandeek, with his half-brother Gstaad powering to a 3-length victory in Saturday's Gr1 Irish 2,000 Guineas just as Australian breeders continue assessing the young Havana Grey stallion ahead of his second season in 2026. By Australian-bred Starspangledbanner, Gstaad arrived in Ireland's first colts' Classic three weeks after finishing second to Bow Echo in the English equivalent and left no doubt about his standing, out-gunning eight rivals to add a second elite success to a CV already rich in substance. Named Europe's Champion 2YO Colt in 2025, he is rated 120 on the IFHA LONGINES World's Best Racehorse Rankings and is likely to renew rivalry with Bow Echo in next month's Gr1 St James's Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot. For Vandeek, who also won twice at Group 1 level during a brilliant juvenile season, the result is a significant pedigree update. The pair are out of the now 19YO Mosa Mine, a daughter of Exceed And Excel bred by the Thomas family's boutique Maywood Stud, and Gstaad's Classic success further elevates her as one of the more remarkable broodmares in the contemporary European sprint-miler sphere. Aidan O'Brien, winning the Irish 2,000 Guineas for the 13th time, described Gstaad as "a lovely, uncomplicated horse" after Ryan Moore delivered another polished ride for Ballydoyle. The champion trainer also raised the possibility of a future Australian target, adding, "We always thought he could turn into a Cox Plate horse, but there's a lot of water to go under the bridge before then." The broader significance for ANZ breeders is the Danehill thread running through the family and its potential relevance to Vandeek's second Arrowfield book. Gstaad is by Starspangledbanner from the Danehill sire-line, while Mosa Mine is by Exceed And Excel, and his success supports sending mares carrying Danehill in the second or third generation to Vandeek. That approach replicates in-breeding patterns that have already produced 177 stakeswinners, including Gr1 winners Joliestar, Jacquinot, Ozzmosis, Schwarz, Sunlight, Zougotcha and this year's Golden Slipper winner Guest House. Vandeek's own sire Havana Grey has also made a fast start to the 2026 European season, with 12 stakes performers and 5 stakeswinners headed by Group winners Almendares, Havana Anna and 3YO filly Sukanya, giving Arrowfield another live international formline around a young stallion whose pedigree has just gained fresh Classic weight. Three mares in foal to Vandeek will be offered at this week's Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale.

Brilliant 2YO Vandeek (pic: Mark Cranham)
Seina Imamura Creates Japanese Group 1 History
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
A historic Japanese Oaks result carried both a human and bloodstock storyline at Tokyo on May 24, when Seina Imamura drove Jurokyu Pierrot through the final stages of the Yushun Himba to become the first Japanese woman jockey to win a domestic Gr1 race. The daughter of Orfevre had begun her career on dirt, a path that reflected Japan's growing willingness to look beyond traditional turf profiles, but she proved fully at home over the Tokyo grass as the 18-filly field stretched out in testing fashion. Drawn in gate 16, Jurokyu Pierrot was allowed to find her rhythm near the rear, travelling with only two rivals behind her as the race developed at a pace more pedestrian than brutal. That tempo meant the backmarkers still needed luck and timing when the field straightened, but the uphill run home opened just enough when the pack fanned across the course and Imamura, rather than panicking, waited for the split that would decide the race. Once daylight appeared, she gathered the filly's early energy and angled her between horses, then threaded through one gap and another as Dream Core and Laughterlines fought on around her. The margin at the finish was only a neck, and the first six runners were covered by a length, but the narrowness of the result only sharpened the sense of composure behind it. It was less a sweeping, dominant Oaks than a race won by nerve, balance and exact positioning, the kind of ride that turns a congested straight into a stage rather than a trap. Imamura, Japan's Best Newcomer Jockey in 2022, was left almost disbelieving at the scale of the achievement. "It's like I'm dreaming," she said after a breakthrough that placed her in rare company and gave Japanese racing another landmark moment in a season already full of international attention. For Jurokyu Pierrot, the win marked an equally important leap, turning a dirt debut winner into an Oaks heroine and extending the top-level reach of Orfevre, whose progeny continue to provide stamina, toughness and versatility. The favourite, multiple Gr1 winner Star Anise, never found the same fluency. Connections had warned beforehand that the draw had created a tactical complication, and that concern was borne out when she was pinched back early, met traffic again on the way into the straight and faded to finish 12th. This, though, was Imamura's day. In a race that demanded patience more than force, she rode with the certainty of someone prepared to let the race come to her, and when it finally did, Jurokyu Pierrot answered with the sharpness required to turn a brief opening into a piece of Japanese racing history.
Acting RQ CEO Reveals Desire to Own Role
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
After more than 15 months in the chair as interim chief executive, Lachlan Murray will formally pursue the permanent Racing Queensland role, backing his hands-on stewardship through one of the state’s more demanding administrative periods. Murray’s current term runs until December 31, but, according to punters.com.au, the process to appoint a full-time CEO is expected to begin shortly, giving him the chance to turn a long audition into a lasting appointment. He told Racenet the timing felt right, with the past year and more having given him an unusually complete view of the organisation, its people and the broader racing landscape. “I think it's a good opportunity and absolutely I'll throw my hat in the ring,” he said. The well-travelled administrator has spent the interim period moving through the many layers of the Queensland industry, from thoroughbred, harness and greyhound racing to the Sunshine State’s major commercial and government relationships. He said the breadth of that exposure had sharpened his understanding of the brief and reinforced his appetite for the job. “I think it's been a great try-before-you-buy, from both perspectives,” he said. “Obviously it's a big state and I've been trying to get around as much as possible and just seeing what it's like at the ground level.” While the recruitment process will determine Racing Queensland’s next permanent leader, Murray believes his case rests on a practical track record built during a period of scrutiny and reform. The role demands a steady hand across codes, regions and stakeholder groups, and his interim tenure has forced him to deal with the political, commercial and participant-facing dimensions of the organisation at the same time. Central to that landscape is the Queensland Government’s Next Lap reform package, released in response to an independent review led by former Australian Turf Club chairman Matt McGrath, which Murray views as both a challenge and a springboard. “Coming out of the racing review and the government's Next Lap response, there are significant opportunities ahead for Racing Queensland and the industry as we go about delivering upon those (110) recommendations,” he said. The reform agenda has been central to his interim tenure, and he said the months since its release had given him a deep working familiarity with what Racing Queensland must now deliver. “I've been living and breathing it for the last number of months as the review was released and the Next Lap response was published. I think it puts me in a pretty good position for the role once the board does go to market.” For Murray, the pitch is therefore not simply that he wants the job, but that he has already absorbed its pressures, tested its demands and seen the industry at close range, from boardroom policy to participants operating at ground level, while carrying the responsibility of keeping Racing Queensland moving through a transitional phase that may yet define its next chapter
Jimmysstar the Kingsford Smith Danger Says Gollan
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
A searching Eagle Farm assignment now gives Jimmysstar the chance to remind punters why he was once regarded as one of the more dangerous horses in training, with Tony Gollan expecting the 6YO to be far better suited in Saturday's Gr1 Kingsford Smith Cup over 1300m than he was when luckless at Doomben. The Queensland champion trainer has his own runner Transatlantic ready to resume after what he described as a faultless build-up, including a trial win, but he still regards Ciaron Maher's visitor as the horse they must all get past if he brings anything like his best. Jimmysstar finished fourth in the Gr1 Doomben 10,000 over 1200m earlier this month, beaten 1.75 lengths by headstrong winner Giga Kick, but the run carried more merit than the bare result after he was crossed soon after the start, pushed back on the fence and left looking for room when the sprint went on. Gollan, who has been hosting Jimmysstar at his Eagle Farm base, said there had been nothing wrong with the horse's latest effort and expects the wider, more expansive home track to help him build through the race rather than be bottled up behind runners. "I would think so. He's in great shape, Jimmy," Gollan told racenet.com.au when asked if Jimmysstar remained the one to beat. "There was nothing wrong with his Doomben 10,000 run. He was buried back on the inside and made some good ground late. Eagle Farm, 1300m, will be ideal for him and he's trained on very well." The market has taken a similar view, keeping Jimmysstar as favourite ahead of King Of Roseau, Private Eye, Farangirl and Gollan's Transatlantic, who sits deeper in betting but has given his trainer quiet encouragement. A last-start Gr3 Gold Coast Guineas winner in the spring, Transatlantic has not raced since but has been deliberately prepared for this return, winning his first trial and then finishing second in another without being asked for everything, leaving Gollan confident he can run well before stretching out again. Gollan said the entire would have a light piece of work early in the week before stepping into the Kingsford Smith, with the Stradbroke Handicap still firmly on the agenda. "He's in such good order, he looks fantastic," Gollan said. "He'll do a little bit of work early this week and then take part in the Kingsford Smith and then a fortnight into the Stradbroke." For Jimmysstar, however, the race looks a timely chance to arrest a preparation that has yet to ignite, despite excuses in both starts. He has not won since the Gr1 CF Orr Stakes over 1400m at Caulfield last November, but if Eagle Farm lets him stretch out from the 400m, Gollan believes the favourite has the platform to rediscover the finish that made him a top-level force.

Elite sprinter Jimmysstar is favourite for the Kingsford Smith (pic: Bradley Photographers)
Female Hoops Rule the Murray Bridge Roost
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
A sharp reminder of the depth in South Australia’s female riding ranks came at Murray Bridge on Saturday, where women claimed eight of the nine races and local apprentice Tala Hutchinson celebrated the most significant win of her emerging career. Guided by Brooke King, who rode an early double, Hutchinson landed her first metropolitan success when Like A Drifter captured the final event for bosses Dan Clarken and Oopy MacGillivray, adding another milestone to a career that began at full pace with 43 winners from her first 250 rides before injury interruptions slowed her advance. The victory carried obvious personal weight for the young jockey, who has been in strong form over recent months and took her tally to 11 winners from 42 rides in March before converting that strike into a metropolitan breakthrough. “It’s amazing,” Hutchinson said. “They gave me my first ever winner and now my first metro winner. I’ve very grateful for their support and everything they’ve done for me, it’s been amazing.” Clarken shared the satisfaction, describing the result as a significant reward for both horse and rider. “It’s been a long time coming, it’s a huge thrill for Oopy and I,” he said. King had earlier set the tone for a dominant afternoon, combining with Hutchinson’s employer Grant Kluske to win with Gold Spirit and also producing a decisive ride on Isuspectu, who returned to winning form in the staying event. After being trapped three wide early, King made the defining move before the field straightened, allowing the mare to stride forward and take up the running before she fought on strongly to hold out Bolted In and Maracourt. The performance underlined King’s judgement and confidence on a day when the female riders repeatedly shaped the card rather than merely filled supporting roles. Gold Spirit, meanwhile, completed King’s double and gave Kluske a welcome response from a horse who had narrowly missed at Morphettville at his previous start. “There’s nothing of him, he’s like a little crayfish,” Kluske said, but the gelding’s size proved no barrier to his competitive resolve, with the win giving the Strathalbyn horseman a second reason to savour the afternoon and another reminder that toughness does not always come in imposing packages. By the end of the meeting, the broader story belonged to the women in the saddle, yet Hutchinson’s breakthrough supplied its emotional centre. For an apprentice whose early promise was checked by injury, a first city win for the same stable that gave her a first career winner felt like a neat and deserved closing flourish to a day already rich in symbolism for South Australian racing.
Romantic Warrior Seals the Triple Crown Deal
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
A place among Hong Kong’s modern greats now belongs to Romantic Warrior after the Danny Shum-trained champion sealed an historic Triple Crown with a commanding victory in the HK$13 million Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup at Sha Tin. Already the richest racehorse in the world and a Group 1 winner across Hong Kong, Australia, Japan and Dubai, the 8YO added the 2400m finale to earlier wins in the Stewards’ Cup over 1600m and the Hong Kong Gold Cup over 2000m, becoming only the third horse to complete the series, after River Verdon in 1993-94 and Voyage Bubble last season. The achievement was made more emphatic by the manner of it, reports racingnews.hkjc, with his class carrying him beyond any question of stamina at the end of a season in which he has again been asked to perform at the highest level. Sent straight to the lead by James McDonald, Romantic Warrior was allowed to control the race before lifting again from the 400m and holding Deep Monster at bay in 2:27.75, a tick outside Voyage Bubble’s record and enough to settle the race without late theatre. “Before the race we already set up the plan – put him to sleep, let him relax, and try to hit the front,” Shum said. “He hit the line in the last 400m, so James has done a great job, he’s top-class jockey.” The success pushed Romantic Warrior’s record to 18 wins from 24 starts and lifted his earnings to HK$288.7 million for owner Peter Lau, extending an extraordinary career that also includes the Hong Kong Cup, Cox Plate, Yasuda Kinen, Dubai Turf, Hong Kong Gold Cup and Stewards’ Cup. McDonald said the champion’s ability to absorb pressure and still find a break had again set him apart, comparing the gelding with Cigar while calling him a “warrior, good jockey” and “absolutely an immortal and I totally agree with him.” Shum is now weighing whether Romantic Warrior returns to Conghua for a break before another international campaign, with the Cox Plate again a possible target and Japan’s Ka Ying Rising among the wider strategic considerations. “The plan is to give him a break,” Shum said. “I will think about whether to send him to Conghua, same as Ka Ying Rising – Ka Ying Rising is very happy (there). So, I might send him to Conghua, give him a little break, and then see how he goes.” For Shum, the performance closed more than one argument. He said he was happy because he had “a very good team and stable,” with Lau, McDonald and the stable staff all central to the outcome, but his strongest view was reserved for the horse himself. “He didn’t need to win this to be that. I think this is the cherry on top – he should be Horse of the Year this year and I think he stamped that by winning the Triple Crown.”
Moody-Coleman on the Front Foot in Brisbane
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
A Brisbane winter double is on the table for Peter Moody, with Desert Lightning and Buthelezi giving the champion trainer two very different chances in Saturday’s Queensland features. According to punters.com.au, Desert Lightning will take his place in the Gr1 Kingsford Smith Cup over 1300m at Eagle Farm, while Buthelezi is being aimed at the Queensland Derby over 2400m, provided he gains a start in the capacity 18-horse field. Moody, who trains in partnership with Katherine Coleman, knows a win by Desert Lightning would probably complicate matters for the Gr1 Stradbroke Handicap, “You’re not going to run and hide from the three-year-olds,” Moody said. “He’ll whack away (Saturday), be competitive, I’m not saying he’ll go there and win. I was very confident in Adelaide but winning another one (Group 1) would be a bonus.” Desert Lightning arrives in better form than he did 12 months ago, having finished second to Transatlantic in the Listed Spear Chief over 1500m, a sharper platform than last year’s fourth in the same race before he finished midfield in the Stradbroke. The 6YO Pride Of Dubai gelding is a $18 Kingsford Smith chance behind Jimmysstar, King Of Roseau, Private Eye, Farangirl and Napoleonic, while Moody and Coleman are seeking consecutive wins in the race after claiming it last year with I Wish I Win. Moody also won the 2011 Kingsford Smith with Black Caviar and is chasing a third Queensland Derby through Buthelezi, who remains just outside the field at 19th in the order of entry. The ex-West Australian 3YO has twice run third in Melbourne since joining the stable, most recently closing from barrier 17 at Flemington to finish third over 2000m after earlier placing in the Gr2 WA Guineas and winning twice in Perth. His Derby place is not yet guaranteed, but his staying profile gives Moody another live hand if attrition opens the door late in the week and the race begins to thin.
Vale New Zealand's Colin Thompson
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
A life spent at the heart of New Zealand breeding and veterinary practice has been remembered with deep affection following the death of highly respected Waikato identity Colin Thompson, who passed away peacefully on Sunday morning aged 97. A leading veterinarian for decades, Thompson was also a breeder, owner and the co-founder of Rich Hill Stud, the premier nursery he established at Matamata in the early 1990s with his late wife Irene, son John, daughter-in-law Colleen and Alan Galbraith. For an industry that has long drawn strength from practical horsemen and women who knew the land as well as the animal, his passing marks the loss of a figure whose influence sat comfortably across both the veterinary and bloodstock worlds. His son John said his father had not suffered at the end, adding: "He didn't suffer and passed away peacefully early on Sunday morning." Thompson's route into the profession reflected the era in which he began. With no veterinary schools in New Zealand at the time, he travelled to Sydney to train before returning home to work for the government-run Vet Club. "Back in his day, there were no vet schools in New Zealand, so he had to go to Sydney and when he came back, he had to work for what was called the Vet Club, which was a government-run organisation," John said. That posting eventually took him to Matamata, where he quickly felt at home, met Irene and began his own practice in Te Aroha, initially working mostly with cattle while also attending to horses. He later returned to Matamata and entered partnership with Jim Marks, before David Christopher and Bill Ewen joined the business, which became an important part of the district's rural and equine life. "When Dad retired it was Marks, Ewen and Associates and Matamata vets bought them out a few years ago," John said. The family's connection with Matamata ran deep. John, one of seven children, was born in 1962, the same year the Thompsons returned to establish the practice, and the district would remain central to Colin Thompson's work, family and legacy. Through Rich Hill Stud, he helped build a farm that became woven into the fabric of New Zealand's bloodstock industry, while his long veterinary career left its own mark across generations of horse people, farmers and breeders. There was no sense of distance between the professional and personal strands of that life; the practice, the horses, the stud and the family all belonged to the same wider story. Remembered as a practical, respected and quietly influential figure, Thompson's contribution was measured not only in the horses and farms he helped, but in the enduring regard of the community that now mourns him.
Precise Execution Gives O'Brien Another Guineas
Tuesday, 26th May 2026
After a defeat at Newmarket that left the market leaning heavily towards True Love, Precise (Startspangledbanner) restored the order Aidan O'Brien had long believed possible with a decisive Irish 1,000 Guineas victory that reopened every conversation about her standing among Ballydoyle's exceptional fillies. This was closer to the filly who had dazzled at two, the one who swept through the Fillies' Mile and had been described by her trainer as "unique" and something he had "never had before", rather than the one who had finished five lengths behind True Love in the 1,000 Guineas only three weeks earlier. At the Curragh, that gap was not merely closed; it was reversed with authority, Precise powering down the outside from about a furlong out and sweeping past the Newmarket heroine before pressing on to win by two and a half lengths. True Love had been easy enough to respect after her brilliant Classic win in England, and Ryan Moore also sided with her, but the Irish result made the market look badly astray as Precise produced a performance of real clarity and substance. For O'Brien, it was a 12th win in the race and completed another notable weekend after the stable had already claimed the Irish 2,000 Guineas, marking the sixth time he has taken both Curragh Guineas in the same year. More unusually, it also gave him the English, French and Irish 1,000 Guineas treble through True Love, Diamond Necklace and Precise, a remarkable spread of fillies even by Ballydoyle standards. The question now is whether Precise might prove the best of them, particularly with the Oaks at Epsom looming on Friday week. No Ballydoyle-trained filly has completed the Irish 1,000 Guineas-Oaks double since Imagine did so 25 years ago, but bookmakers reacted quickly, with Coral cutting Precise to 4-1 from 16 for the Betfred-sponsored Classic. O'Brien did not close the door on the quick back-up, instead pointing to the pedigree and the impression she left under pressure. "We were talking on the way to the races and Annemarie [Aidan's wife] said how much stamina is in the pedigree and she is out of a really good and genuine Galileo mare," he said. "Obviously the lads will make the decision with regard to running in the Oaks and we'll see how she comes out of today. There is a good chance she'll run and Ryan felt today that she was running with a view to going on to the Oaks. It's very exciting and she has an incredible pedigree." That pedigree is now being matched by achievement, and while True Love and Diamond Necklace remain top-class points of reference, Precise has put herself right back at the centre of the season with a Classic win that suggested she is not simply rediscovering last year's brilliance, but building on it.

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Daily News

Vandeek Gets Another Big Catalogue Page Boost

Brilliant 2YO Vandeek (pic: Mark Cranham)

Seina Imamura Creates Japanese Group 1 History

Acting RQ CEO Reveals Desire to Own Role

Jimmysstar the Kingsford Smith Danger Says Gollan

Elite sprinter Jimmysstar is favourite for the Kingsford Smith (pic: Bradley Photographers)

Female Hoops Rule the Murray Bridge Roost

Romantic Warrior Seals the Triple Crown Deal

Moody-Coleman on the Front Foot in Brisbane

Vale New Zealand's Colin Thompson

Precise Execution Gives O'Brien Another Guineas

2025 BTR Stud Stallions

BTP STUD STALLIONS