Rare Coast rivalry for racing siblings
JOCKEY Ryan Plumb will go up against sister and trainer Angela today confident he can even the ledger with his sibling.
Plumb has made the decision to ride Gillian Heinrich’s lightly raced filly Faberge Lass in today’s Surfside Buses Maiden Plate (1200m) on the Gold Coast instead of Angela’s Dragons Esprit.
The Gold Coast-based jockey, who lives with Angela, has previously ridden both horses and said the tough decision between the two simply came down to who he thought could get the job done.
“I’ve ridden Dragons Esprit a hundred or two hundred times in track work,” Plumb said.
“We broke him in as a baby and breezed it up. He hasn’t really reached his full potential or raced as good as his ability on the track.
“I rode Gillian’s first up and it gave me a really nice feel and only got beaten by a short head. It wasn’t an easy thing to decide to not ride on of hers.”
The easier option would have been to take to the saddle on Dragons Esprit who will carry a weight of 57.5kg but such is Plumb’s confidence that he trimmed down to ride Faberge Lass who will carry 55kg.
“All my other rides are heavier on the day but I’ve chosen to ride a couple of kilograms lighter and I’m dieting hard to ride Gillian’s horse,” he said.
It will be the second time Plumb has ridden against Angela and he is hoping his judgment is better this time.
Plumb opted to ride Brad Herne’s Splendid Stryker at the Gold Coast on May 27 but finished fourth while Angela’s Barraaj claimed second after being beaten by a nose.
“I made the wrong decision that day,” Plumb said.
“I thought my horse would beat hers and hers beat mine quite easily.”
Plumb will take solace from knowing that if he does lose for a second time to his sister that it will be for a good cause.
One of the owners of Dragons Esprit is John O’sullivan, a man who has owned horses with multiple generations of the Plumb family. O’sullivan is in a coma in hospital and will undergo surgery today on his leg.
“He is sick at the moment so it might give him some good news,” Plumb said.
“He will be asleep for the race but hopefully it is some sort of consolation when he wakes up if he wins.”
Angela said she was confident Dragons Esprit could challenge for a win but revealed she would likely withdraw the four-year-old from the race should the track be too wet.