3 minute read
Post race trainer and jockey quotes after Graff won the Group 2 Caulfield Sprint.
Race Result:
1st: Graff (Damien Oliver/D O’Brien) - $8
2nd: Fabergino (J Childs/T Robertson) - $9
3rd: Crystal Dreamer (D Lane/M Ellerton & S Zahra) - $41
Winning Time: 58.03 Last 600m: 33.91
Margins: 1¼L x ½ Head
Danny O'Brien take a bow.
— Racing.com (@Racing) October 17, 2020
Graff over the top of them in the Caulfield Sprint.
Jayne Ivil is on from the yard. pic.twitter.com/RtS6U1RZGF
Winning Trainer: Danny O’Brien
“He’s a horse that has always showed a lot of ability. I’ve followed him his whole career, I was actually bred him. Antony Thompson and I bred him and sold him at the Magic Millions to Alan Bell.
“I’ve known him since he was a foal, so it’s good to be back involved with him and it’s good to bring him back to winning form.
“He’s a horses that’s always shown talent and raced at the top level throughout. Hopefully this can give him a real confidence boost and we can get him back to winning another good race, not that winning a Group 2 on Caulfield Cup day is not a good race anyway.”
Plan to ride quietly in a 1000m race: “Damien had a bit to do with him previously and he thought you had to trick him into running well to make him come off the bridle early. So we thought give him an easy front half of the race and then have him feeling well and hitting the line.
“We’ve had him fairly fresh and well and its that Damien, and everyone in our team has a say on what we do, we aggregate our opinions and sometimes it comes off.”
Darley Sprint: “We’re heading to the Group 2 race on Derby Day with him, so I’d say we’ll still go that way and potentially back up.
“There’s a lot of good sprints in the autumn if we can just keep him happy and bouncy, I’m sure he can get into another good race.”
Winning Jockey: Damien Oliver
“He’s always shown a lot of ability, this horse. He’s a big, strong stallion. I rode him in his first trial in the wet and the rein slipped on me and away he went.
“I said to Danny (O’Brien) that I reckon we should put this horse in a 1000 (metre race) where there’s good speed and ride him dead cold. Worked out well today. I kept him up there, up behind their bums longer than I normally would. I think when you produce him late, he’s got a great finish.”
Jordan Childs on Fabergino: “I thought she ran well. Just got a little bit awkward around the corner but she toughed it out to the line. I think getting her back to Flemington she should be hard to beat.”
Ben Melham on unplaced favourite Alfa Oro: “This horse, he’s had a rough career and he takes a lot of managing. I don’t think he ran to his best today. He’s every bit as good as those horses but he just didn’t run to his best today.”
Jade Darose on Jungle Edge: “I don’t think he’s below his best, he just needs the wet tracks. They can quicken on top of the ground whereas he battles a bit.
“It’s softish but for him to win in Group 2’s, it needs to be more his conditions. He was good but it was too dry for him today.”
