I can't wait for the big races and the headline horses to step out again here in Australia. There is always an air of excitement around this time of the year.
I can't wait for the big races and the headline horses to step out again here in Australia. There is always an air of excitement around this time of the year.
Once the season slips into top gear, there will be at least one major race in Sydney or Melbourne every weekend from now until November. Almost without exception, they will have a bearing on the Cups and the Classics ahead.
The start of a new season brings hope afresh that Team Godolphin can again play a hand in most of those major races this Spring and next Autumn. There may also be ambitions for Hong Kong in December, as well. As I say, exciting times.
The building process that took place last season has left the stable well positioned.
After returning from the UK, where I rode for Team Godolphin for several weeks during the summer, I have been discussing plans for our horses with John O'Shea.
Let's look at our highest-profile horses first.
Contributer was a star for the team right from the time he stepped off the plane from the UK. We knew he was class, and he showed it by winning at Group One level. It was a pity he suffered a setback and did not make the line-up for the Queen Elizabeth in Sydney last April.
We are learning about him all the time. What John O'Shea and the team believe is that he runs best when fresh.
With this in mind, the plan is for him to run only three times in the Spring. John plans his first outing to be the Dato Chin Nam Stakes at Moonee Valley, followed by the Turnbull Stakes at Flemington, with his major target being the Cox Plate, back at Moonee Valley, on Oct 24.
We also found Contributer raced best when he was handy to the pace in his races. He has progressed well since his last campaign and he is again an exciting prospect.
Hartnell is shaping up as a Cups horse for the spring. Last campaign, he won a Group 1, the BMW Stakes, also a Group 3, and he ran well in defeat in both the Chipping Norton and the Sydney Cup.
I had a feel of him on the track recently, and he appears to have done well too.
It's Somewhat is an import, who I expect to be better this campaign. He has strengthened up nicely during his break.
Team Godolphin have some great talent in the three-year-old division. Exosphere is one I particularly like. He was one of the favourites for the Golden Slipper but never got the chance to run his race behind Vancouver.
But he had won both his lead-up races and he goes very well. I think he will improve as a three-year-old. He's got to fill out his big frame and then we will see something. The Golden Rose is his early target.
My pick of the fillies at this stage is Painted Firetail, who won her only start, at Randwick last April. She is another by Lonhro, and is one of my favourites.
Finally, I finished second to Hugh Bowman in the Sydney jockeys championship which concluded last week. Hugh is a great rider and one of my great mates in the weighing room. If I couldn't win the title, I was happy for Hugh to win it. But I will give him a run for his money next time, make no mistake.
