In today's Straight Shorts, the Coolmore Classic winner Lady Shenandoah has been spelled, Mr Brightside heads our Hong Kong entries, Racing Victoria gets serious about jumpouts, Darley personnel changes, plus more.

Lady Shenandoah
Lady Shenandoah has been sent for a spell after an undefeated autumn campaign. (Photo: Bronwen Healy. The Image is Everything - Bronwen Healy Photography)

Autumn over for Coolmore Classic winner Lady Shenandoah

Lady Shenandoah has been spelled by her trainer Chris Waller after an unbeaten three-start Sydney autumn preparation.

The leading Sydney trainer said the filly, the winner of the Group 1 Surround Stakes and Coolmore Classic, would head to the paddock after her perfect three-year-old season.

Waller will contemplate what the spring holds over the next few weeks for the talented Hermitage-owned Lady Shenandoah, who also won the Group 1 Flight Stakes in the spring.

 “Whilst we could have been tempted to run in the Doncaster or other races over the carnival, I feel she is still growing and developing,” Waller said of the daughter of Snitzel.

“This time last year she hadn’t even had her first race. She has an exciting future ahead.”

Brightside heads Aussie-based noms for Champions Day

Ten Australian-trained horses are among entries for Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Champions Day at Sha Tin on April 27.

Nine-time Group 1 winner Mr Brightside heads the list which also includes Caulfield Cup winner Duke de Sessa and recent Canterbury stakes winner Royal Patronage.  

The remaining Australian-prepared horses are Fawkner Park, Jimmystar, Lady Laguna, Land Legend, Middle Earth, Ostraka and Port Lockroy.

The local contingent for the three Group 1 races is headlined by Sprint Prize entrant Ka Ying Rising and miler Voyage Bubble, as well as the winners of the 2024 Mile and Sprint Prize, Beauty Eternal and Invincible Sage.

The Francis-Henri Graffard-trained Group 1 King George winner Goliath, who is co-owned by American John Stewart's Resolute Racing, is entered as is William Haggs’ duo Dubai Honour and Lake Forest.

A 25-strong Japanese contingent is led by Triple Crown heroine Liberty Island, the daughter of Australian Group 1 winner Yankee Rose.

Romantic Warrior won’t compete for a fourth straight win in the QEII Cup and will instead head to the Dubai Turf on April 5.

Japanese hero Forever Young, who defeated Romantic Warrior in the Saudi Cup, headlines entries for the Dubai World Cup.

Racing Victoria beefs up jumpout broadcasts 

Racing Victoria has announced a suite of improvements to its coverage of the state’s jumpouts.

All Victorian jumpouts will now be covered by Racing.com to ensure standardised professional vision while racecallers have also been introduced.

Process enhancements over recent months now mean that the colours worn by each horse in jumpouts are accurately reflected in results on Racing.com given they often differ from racing colours.

Jumpout results and form are now also accessible within horse profiles on the Racing Australia website, as per official trials.

The broadcasting enhancements are all part of an improved, centralised industry service being produced by RV through Racing.com in response to owner and punter feedback.

As part of the upgrade, Racing.com has launched a dedicated online hub which serves as a gateway to the replays of all Victorian jumpouts. 

“There are over 350 sets of jumpouts across Victoria annually. They are an important part of a horse’s training regime and provide valuable insight into how a horse is progressing in its preparation,” RV chief executive Aaron Morrison said.

“The jump-out model is a strong feature of Victorian racing, which is highly valued by participants and owners given the flexibility benefits and cost-efficiency as compared to more expensive official trials.” 

Changes made to Darley’s nominations team

Darley, the stallion arm of Godolphin, has made personnel changes to its Australian sales team, promoting Arvin Chadee as its NSW nominations manager and appointing Lisa Manning to the same position in Victoria.

In further changes made under the helm of Godolphin Australia managing director Andy Makiv, Darley has also employed Tess O’Connor as a nominations sales consultant in Victoria and Sebastian Angelillo as a member of the NSW nominations team.

Darley’s Head of Stallions Alastair Pulford will continue to provide support to the nominations team. 

“Each of our team members brings something unique to the table, from years of industry experience to strong relationships with breeders,” Pulford said. 

“I’m confident that with Lisa and Arvin leading their respective teams, along with Sebastian and Tess supporting them, our clients will have the best possible guidance throughout their breeding decisions.”

In making the announcements, Darley also confirmed that shuttlers Blue Point (Victoria), Harry Angel and Pinatubo (NSW) would be returning to Australia in 2025.

The media release, however, made no mention of whether reigning champion first-season sire Too Darn Hot, who was rested from shuttle duties last season, would be on a plane to Kelvinside later this year.

Darley is expected to announce its finalised roster and service fees in April.

MP: Tourists dodging POCT could be costing NSW racing hundreds of millions

A NSW Upper House MP has claimed the racing industry could be missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars from the failure to charge visitors to the state Point Of Consumption Tax while they are gambling.

Jeremy Buckingham, of the Legalise Cannabis Party, asked NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey on Wednesday if wagering operators were charging POCT based on a user’s location, or whether it was on their residential address.

Mookhey couldn’t answer if that was the case, but said he would take the question on notice.

“It is fair to say that I am not advised as to what proportion of our point of consumption tax is collected from tourists from other states or tourists from abroad,” the Treasurer told parliament,

Buckingham took that answer as a ‘no’, detailing his concerns to parliament later in the session.

“I think that means it is highly likely that we are not and that there is a massive loophole in the point of consumption tax where we are not generating revenue from interstate or international visitors to this State,” Buckingham said.

“It is a significant number. NSW has 40 million visitors a year. Many of them come here to go to events and to gamble.”

Under the current NSW regime, 30 per cent of POCT receipts are passed onto the three racing codes. The government estimates it will collect $300 million in POCT this financial year.

“Do some sums on the back of the beer coaster, as I am wont to do, and that quickly comes up to hundreds of millions of dollars in the forward estimates that could be available to this State to put into Racing NSW,” Buckingham said.

“I hope it is paying attention; this is revenue that it could get - Greyhound Racing NSW and, dare I say it, gambling harm reduction and other good causes. We introduced this tax for a reason.”

Buckingham pointed to the flatlining of Point Of Consumption revenue as possible evidence, although that has occurred across every state in Australia as wagering turnover has declined over the past three years. 

Renovation approved for Port Augusta racetrack

Racing SA has given its financial support for renovating the Port Augusta Racing Club (PARC) track, ensuring the future of racing in the region while adopting what it says are environmentally friendly and sustainable practices.

With Racing SA board approval, the project will commence with the delivery of 3500 tonnes of screened sand to resurface the existing track profile.

The renovation works will result in a brief recess in racing and training activities, with a meeting scheduled for April 13 to be postponed.

Racing is scheduled to return on April 27.

The project will also see the phasing out of oil that has been applied to the track since its inception. 

“With this renovation, we're not only improving the racing surface but also taking steps towards more sustainable track management," Racing SA chief executive Nick Bawden said.

Latest Straight Talk podcast now online

This week's episode of Straight Talk with Bren O'Brien and Tim Rowe, proudly sponsored by Darley and Inglis, dives deep into the biggest topic in the racing world: the potential sale of Rosehill Racecourse.

Amidst strong opposition from factions such as Save Rosehill, and proponents led by Australian Turf Club chairman Peter McGauran, the episode unravels the complexities of this billion-dollar proposal and the upcoming member vote that could decide its fate.

Bren and Tim also explore other pivotal topics in the racing industry.

They share insights on the upcoming sale of the celebrated racehorse Bella Nipotina during an interview with owner Michael Christian, and discuss the challenges faced by smaller to medium breeders when chatting to Canning Downs' Joy Mackay. 

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