HUGH KNEW J-MAC WOULD BE A STAR
A ROLLOUT putting green strategically placed in the jockeys’ room could be the only way to unsettle champion rider James Mcdonald on Derby Day at Flemington.
Group 1 collector Mcdonald, who rode four winners on the corresponding card last year to set up a single-season record Melbourne Cup Carnival haul, has nine rides Saturday including five favourites.
His mounts in the Coolmore Stud Stakes (In Secret) and Empire Rose Stakes (La Crique) dominate the respective Group 1 markets, while Sharp ‘N’ Smart is a $3.50 second favourite in the Victoria Derby.
Australian Racing Hall of Fame jockey Hugh Bowman, a close friend and confidant of Mcdonald, said confidence, maturity and discipline has helped the in-form hoop cope with the winning momentum. “I’m really proud of him, he’s a great friend and he’s got the wind in his sails,” Bowman said.
“I guess I can appreciate what he’s feeling, I’d like to be going through it myself but who’s to say it won’t happen again.
“It’s really about having the good horses to ride and you get the confidence and your momentum starts to go your way.”
Bowman won 25 of his 104 Group 1 races, including an unprecedented four-straight Cox Plates, with Winx.
The indomitable Bowman-winx reign often relegated Mcdonald to the minor end of the Group 1 prizes, including the 2016 Cox Plate when legendary mare Winx blew past the great Hartnell. Mcdonald thought he had the right until he got Winx burn.
Bowman said maturity in the past five years especially is the grounding for Mcdonald’s current success.
“He’s very disciplined and he’s very focused and he’s at that age where he’s mature enough to cope with the momentum he has gathered,” Bowman said.
“I remember a few years ago when I was going like he is now, he was running second after second and he was doing nothing wrong, I remember his frustration.”
Bowman, who won the Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes last week on Sharp ‘N’ Smart, will travel to Melbourne on Sunday to prepare for the Cup ride on Duais after fulfilling a $10m Golden Eagle commitment.
He cannot wait to lock horns with Mcdonald again, although the Kiwi lost his Cup ride on Friday when Loft was scratched. “Obviously I’m out there trying to do my best and I get more satisfaction out of beating him than anyone else,” Bowman said.
“I’m sure he would say the same but off the track we are very close, we bounce off each other and I’m sure our closeness has helped him maybe, watching me go through it, and now he’s doing it.
“I watched the riders above me, Glen Boss do it, Damien Oliver went through it before I was at the peak of my powers, (Darren) Beadman and (Shane) Dye in the years’ gone by.”
Mcdonald has amassed a withering record in the past 18 months, stacking Group 1 and feature races like Jenga.
His tally includes the Melbourne Cup, Cox Plate, The Everest and the King’s Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot aboard Nature Strip earlier in the year.
Last Melbourne Cup Carnival McDonald created history as the first jockey in 160 years to ride 10 winners across the four days, shading Brett Prebble, his idol growing up.
Prebble rode nine twice (1999 and 2000) at the Flemington carnival.