Jockey Thomas Stockdale is eager to sustain the excitement of his recent entry into fatherhood with a top-tier triumph at Flemington.
Stockdale teams up with the Simon Zahra-trained Onavuitton in the Group 1 Australian Guineas (1600m) this Saturday, acknowledging the formidable challenge in the three-year-old feature, though it often delivers surprises.
Stockdale and his wife Lily, daughter of ex-jockey Peter Mertens, welcomed their son Ronnie on Sunday, and Stockdale noted the ongoing thrill of new parenthood.
“They got home on Tuesday, and I’ve been pretty much running on adrenalin since,” Stockdale said.
Amid the delights of family life, Stockdale remains focused on the task ahead this Saturday, pursuing the most significant victory of his career.
Previously this year, he guided Unit Five to victory in the Magic Millions 2YO Classic at the Gold Coast, yet a Group 1 success would carry extra weight, particularly following his son’s arrival.
Onavuitton, at $26 in betting, appears an outsider against the leading trio of Observer ($2.30), Sixties ($2.90) and Planet Red ($4.80), but the Australian Guineas has seen upsets like Lunar Fox at $301 in 2021 and last year’s winner Feroce at $14.
Onavuitton has only four starts, placing third in the Group 2 VRC Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) at Flemington last March.
The colt resumed with a maiden win at Cranbourne last month then finished fourth to Observer in the Group 2 Autumn Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on February 7.
“We were happy with his run,” Stockdale said.
“He was a month between runs, and they never sat up in the race. They ran along at a good clip the whole way and Observer, he’s a class horse.
“I thought he did a good job to keep rolling along on the hot speed like he did, especially off the gap between runs.
“He would have benefitted off it, and if you take the top three out and it’s a very even race.
“He always puts his best foot forward and his run in the Sires’ at Flemington was good and I think getting back to the bigger track at Flemington is only going to help him, especially stepping up to the mile.
“It’s a race that can throw up a rough result and Simon’s team is flying, they’re getting result after result and I’m confident they will have him in tip-top order on Saturday.”
Explore the Australian betting sites for the latest racing odds ahead of the Australian Guineas showdown.