It’s Time to defy history
First-up victory beckons
Magic Time has history and Imperatriz to defy in Saturday’s Newmarket Handicap.
The Group 1 mare has a chance to become only the fifth first-up winner of the famous Flemington sprint in more than a century.
Roch ‘N’ Horse achieved the feat in 2022 off a 56-day break between runs, while Redkirk Warrior in 2017 claimed the first of two Newmarkets with a 119-day gap.
Grahame Begg-trained Magic Time could match Redkirk Warrior on Saturday – 119 days since her Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes triumph.
“History is meant to be broken,” Begg said.
“She has got a good record and she races very well fresh, that’s why we thought we’ll have a crack at Newmarket.”
Magic Time is slated to get 53.5kg in the Newmarket Handicap – a 4.5kg advantage over eight-time Group 1-winner and favourite Imperatriz.
Weights for the 151st Newmarket Handicap, first run in 1874, will be released on Monday.
Begg considered the weightfor-age Group 1 Canterbury Stakes (1300m) in Sydney on Saturday but elected to “utilise the handicap” in Melbourne.
“While she’s down low in the handicaps we wanted to use that and then we’ll head to Sydney after Saturday,” Begg said. “We’ll look at maybe running in the TJ Smith and All Aged Stakes, which looks a very good race for her.”
Magic Time finished fourth in an 800m straight jumpout at
Flemington last Friday.
The four-year-old also galloped strongly between races at Sandown last month.
“She wasn’t out to do a lot (Friday) just go through her gears, have a bit of a look at the track,” Begg said.
“She has only raced here once around the circle when she won The Amanda Elliott, not last spring carnival but the one before.
“It was good to bring her away from Cranbourne, a trip away, just to tighten her up.
“Mick (Dee) had a very good hold of her, she was pretty tractable.”
The 119-day gap between runs is a bit deceiving fitness wise, as Magic Time raced deep into the spring, culminating in an impressive Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes triumph.
“To be truthful she didn’t have to do a lot, it’s a pretty tight turnaround from running in the Rupert Clarke,” Begg said.
“We gave her a bit of a break, obviously we always love to give them longer but we wanted to run in the autumn … she’s been in work a good amount of time.”
The Newmarket has been good to fillies and mares across the past five years with Sunlight (2019), Roch ‘N’ Horse (2022) and In Secret (2023) victorious.
Imperatriz has history of her own to make, if successful, as only the third horse since 1991 to win the Newmarket with 58kg or more. Legendary mare Black Caviar won with 58kg in 2011, while Hay Listed saluted a year later with 58.5kg.