Demonstrating remarkable sustained speed, Flying Houdini secured victory in the season’s inaugural juvenile race, the Group 3 $250,000 Breeders Plate (1000m) held at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
The colt, trained by the formidable Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott partnership, was acquired for a modest $60,000 as a yearling. He performed in line with his strong barrier trial showings, decisively overcoming several colts boasting superior pedigrees and heftier price tags.
“Of all our two-year-olds coming here today, he has been the most natural all the way through,” Bott commented. “He has been thriving every single day of his preparation and we didn’t have an excuse not to bring him here today. You saw his attitude, he’s very determined, his ears went back and he was in for the fight. He has done it all very easily through the campaign and you saw today when he was challenged he found another length.”
Ridden by Regan Bayliss, Flying Houdini ($7) controlled the race from the outset, comfortably beating Capitano ($3.80) by a length and a quarter. Nonu ($2.45 favourite) finished a further length and a half back in third.
Bayliss remarked that Flying Houdini embodied the renowned ‘bone and muscle’ characteristic of the Tulloch Lodge stable. “He’s a streetfighter and I knew if I could find the front today, nothing would get past him,” Bayliss stated. “They’d come to him, but he just pins his ears back and goes right through the line. I came off the fence which is not ideal on a two-year-old because you lose your advantage coming off and being out there. But to his credit, once he straightened up and I switched the stick over, he really quickened well and his last hundred was the best part of his race.”
This triumph marked a record ninth Breeders Plate win for Waterhouse. Bott indicated that the colt is being set for the major two-year-old races later in the season. “He is a nice value purchase by RedFox and full credit to them, they continue to buy these nice horses that perform on the big stage,” Bott added. “The path has always been for our two-year-olds to get here today, that is a big job in itself, and he will go for a spell now. He’s a horse we can bring back early in the New Year, resume here in Sydney, then we can go to the Blue Diamond and then target the Golden Slipper.”
Historically, eight Breeders Plate winners have gone on to claim the Golden Slipper, including notable Waterhouse-trained colts Vancouver (2015), Pierro (2012), and Sebring (2008). Other notable dual winners include Capitalist (2016), Luskin Star (1977), Baguette (1970), Eskimo Prince (1964), and Sky High (1960). Conversely, the Gimcrack Stakes-Golden Slipper double has not been achieved by a filly since the latter’s introduction in 1957.
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