Sydney’s Chris Waller may not be represented by champion mare Winx as originally intended but the top trainer still has two final acceptors in the Apollo Stakes 2018 field at Royal Randwick on the weekend.
Comin’ Through is one of two Chris Waller-trained hopefuls in a Winx-less Apollo Stakes 2018 field on Saturday in Sydney. Photo: Steve Hart.
Triple Cox Plate winner Winx was set to shoot for a third straight win in the Group 2 $250,000 The Star Apollo Stakes (1400m) first-up until the dual riding suspensions of hoop Hugh Bowman.
The 15-time Group 1 champ is instead engaged for a special galloper after Race 3 on Apollo Stakes Day before resuming on March 3 in the Group 1 $600,000 Chipping Norton Stakes (1600m).
That leaves Waller with two other runners in his attempt at another Apollo Stakes trophy Endless Drama and Comin’ Through drawn in barriers three and eight respectively.
The Apollo Stakes final field attracted just the nine hopefuls.
Tye Angland rides Waller’s Lope De Vega entire Endless Drama second-up, the six-year-old coming off a good first-up third when under a length beaten in the Listed Carrington Stakes (1400m) at Rosehill on January 27.
That was his first run in nearly a year and Endless Drama is out to improve on his third behind Winx in last autumn’s Apollo Stakes trifecta.
Stablemate Comin’ Through has a wider barrier to overcome in the weight-for-age Group 2, Jason Collett on the Fastnet Rock four-year-old.
A gun over the distance (5:3-1-1), Comin’ Through hasn’t raced since his failed 15th behind Tosen Stardom in the Group 1 Toorak Handicap (1600m) at Caulfield last October.
He has trialled twice since at Rosehill ahead of his return and is two-from-three first-up.
The two horses that beat Endless Drama home in the Carrington Stakes meanwhile are both also accepted for a rematch in the Apollo Stakes on Saturday.
The race was won in fine style by the Mark Newnham-trained Per Incanto five-year-old Lanciato who chases a third straight win this weekend.
Boasting four wins, two seconds and a third from eight 1400m runs to date the former New Zealand-trained gelding steps up notably in class having his first Group start since January of 2016 back across the Tasman.
His Carrington Stakes winning jockey, apprentice Rachel King, retains the ride on Saturday and the duo are drawn in gate six.
Carrington Stakes runner-up was the Kris Lees-trained Prized Icon who has the inside run from barrier one with Glyn Schofield riding on Saturday.
A four-year-old son of More Than Ready, Prized Icon has won over $1.8 million in career prize money thanks to his dual Group 1 wins in the 2016 Champagne Stakes and the 2016 Victoria Derby.
He hasn’t won since his success in the latter, but has been competitive in plenty since and from four runs over the Apollo Stakes distance has run second three times.
Another gun first-up runner in the Apollo Stakes mix drawn one outside of Prized Icon in gate two is the super-consistent Gary Moore-trained Classic Uniform.
A three-time winner at the Randwick track from six starts, the Al Maher five-year-old won back-to-back Randwick races last time in including defeating Happy Clapper home in the Group 3 Craven Plate (2000m).
That followed a Group 2 Hill Stakes (1800m) win, and while yet to salute first-up, Classic Uniform has trialled well twice including his third to Saturday’s 2018 Black Caviar Lightning favourite Redzel over 1000m at Rosehill on February 5.
Other standouts include Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott’s dual Group 1 winning mare Global Glamour and the Bjorn Baker-trained Savabeel colt Addictive Nature coming off a third in the Group 2 Expressway Stakes (1200m).
See below for the official Apollo Stakes 2018 field, barriers and jockeys with updated odds to open shortly at Ladbrokes.com.au.
2018 Apollo Stakes Final Field & Barrier Draw
Randwick Race 6 (4:25pm) – 17/02/2018
| # | Form (Last 10) | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | H. Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | x80222511x | CLASSIC UNIFORM | Gary Moore | Tim Clark | 2 | 59kg | 109 |
| 2 | x6202720x2 | PRIZED ICON | Kris Lees | Glyn Schofield | 1 | 59kg | 107 |
| 3 | 15x0x360x3 | ENDLESS DRAMA (IRE) | Chris Waller | Tye Angland | 3 | 59kg | 104 |
| 4 | 212411x13x | STAMPEDE | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | TBA | 9 | 59kg | 103 |
| 5 | 126x69650x | INFERENCE | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Brenton Avdulla | 7 | 59kg | 102 |
| 6 | 5338x1160x | COMIN’ THROUGH | Chris Waller | Jason Collett | 8 | 59kg | 101 |
| 7 | 5x31x1x311 | LANCIATO (NZ) | Mark Newnham | Ms Rachel King (a) | 6 | 59kg | 96 |
| 8 | 1302x19x64 | GLOBAL GLAMOUR | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | TBA | 4 | 57kg | 107 |
| 9 | 1213×3 | ADDICTIVE NATURE | Bjorn Baker | Adam Hyeronimus | 5 | 55.5kg | 88 |
