Millions lead-up in line for an upgrade
THE Gold Coast Turf Club is expected to push for an upgrade of its two-year-old race leading into the Magic Millions Classic.
The race is run over 1100m the week before the Classic and is fast becoming the best formline for the race.
Three of the past four Millions 2YO Classic winners – Le Chef, Houtzen and Sunlight – have won the race.
Gold Coast Turf Club chief executive Steve Lines said on form the race could probably have its prizemoney lifted in an effort to have the overall race day boosted.
“It certainly has produced the right formlines to be a bigger race,” Lines said.
“Some of the big southern stables might start looking at it as a perfect Classic lead-up.”
Lines confirmed a meeting scheduled for the Gold Coast during the Commonwealth Games would be switched to Beaudesert racecourse.
The meeting was set down for the Gold Coast on April 7.
“We plan to put on a lot of buses for our members and public and make it a beach meets bush race day,” he said.
Trainer Tony Gollan is naturally disappointed he didn’t win the Magic Millions 2YO Classic on Saturday but he can take heart from the fact he is still clearly king of the Queensland summer.
Gollan has targeted summer carnivals and has won 15 feature races in recent years.
He had another wonderful summer with the highlight Magic Millions day at Aquis Park on Saturday even though Outback Barbie and Ef Troop ran third and fourth in the 2YO Classic.
Gollan-trained horses won $921,250 at the meeting with the lion’s share coming from I’m A Rippa’s $600,000 first prize in the $1 million Magic Millions QTIS Handicap.
It lifted his stable summer carnival earnings to just under $1.5 million which included feature wins by Ef Troop (Phelan Ready Stakes), Outback Barbie (Calaway Gal Stakes) and Most Important (Lough Neagh Stakes).
Gollan also picked up a $50,000 bonus for being the leading trainer in the Summer Crown race series.
“It wasn’t the result we wanted in the Magic Millions Classic as more than a few things went wrong,” he said.
“But I’m A Rippa is an example of how we will be back trying again next year.”
IT CERTAINLY HAS PRODUCED THE RIGHT FORMLINES TO BE A BIGGER RACE CHIEF EXECUTIVE STEVE LINES