Redkirk Warrior has continued his incredible affiliation with the Flemington straight by successfully defending his crown in the Group 1 Newmarket Handicap (1200m).
The son of Notnowcato returned to racing this time for an outstanding win in the Group 1 Black Caviar Lightning Stakes (1000m), but under Handicap conditions he was charged with carrying nearly 5kgs more this year than what he easily won with in 2017.
Jumping from the gates well this afternoon, jockey Regan Bayliss pulled the horse to the outside rail and set a good tempo alongside the likes of Thronum and Lucky Liberty, as Ken’s Dream, Merchant Navy and Rock Magic led a small pack on the inside rail.
Brave Smash began to make a big move on the inside of the course with 300m and looked to be the winner, but Redkirk Warrior called on his massive turn of foot and wouldn’t be beaten; winning the race in an exciting photo.
Three-year-old Merchant Navy worked home well to finish third, while Perth raider Rock Magic produced another strong performance to finish fourth.
Bayliss has now won three Group 1 races, all on Redkirk Warrior and was thrilled to be on the horse again this afternoon.
“I am just so blessed, I’m only twenty years of age and ive found a horse like this so early in my career,” Bayliss said.
“He just keeps defying history this horse. He was the first horse to win the Newmarket first-up in 100 years and now he’s won consecutive Newmarkets. It’s not easy to do, so it just goes to show the scope of this animal.
“We went to the outside fence and we couldn’t win coming from the middle. The inside was the place to be, but we rolled the dice and went to the outside, and he just travelled beautifully.
“He was there to be beaten, but good horses don’t give in and he’s one of them.”
David Hayes was thrilled with the horse’s performance, but revealed that the Lindsay Park team is yet to settle on his next point of call.
“To win with topweight in a Newmarket, he’s a wonderful horse,” Hayes said.
“We were very confident he’d run a mighty race and I thought he was the horse that everyone would have to beat.
“He had to lump that weight and as it turned out with the trend of racing today, he was going to come down the outside. So it may not have been the place to be, but he was good enough to hang on.
“We’ll just see how he pulls up. He’s been invited to Royal Ascot and we might go there, but he loves Lindsay Park so much that I half don’t want to travel him either. So let’s just sleep on it and make a few decisions.”
Redkirk Warrior is the $10 second-favourite in our early market for the Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes (1200m) at Randwick during The Championships.