Todd on group1 ‘mission’

SYDNEY: Former neighbours in New Zealand, dual Olympic eventing gold medallist Sir Mark Todd and jockey James McDonald, are joining forces to try to win the group 1 Ranvet Stakes with British horse He’s Eminent.

‘‘We go back a long way,’’ Sir Mark said.

‘‘We were neighbours back in Cambridge and James and his brother Luke used to come on their ponies and ride with our kids around the farm.

‘‘So I have known him a long time and it’s been great following his career. He’s done brilliantly well and he’s a really nice guy.’’

McDonald has won two Sydney premierships in 201314 and 201516 and has a commanding lead over Hugh Bowman twothirds of the way through this season.

He’s Eminent stamps a return to training for Sir Mark after he was called on by owners Sir Peter Vela and Hubie de Burgh to prepare the horse for a Sydney campaign aimed at the Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick three weeks later.

Sir Mark won the 2003 New Zealand Oaks and 2007 Wellington Cup during a previous training stint.

He’s Eminent, by Frankel, raced in Europe as Eminent and had strong form as a 3yrold in 2017 before his form tapered off last year.

‘‘Talk about giving me a mission,’’ Todd said.

‘‘The horse hasn’t raced since August last year, I haven’t trained for 10 years and here we are firstup in a group 1 race.

‘‘Sir Peter Vela was a partowner of the horse with the trainer, Martyn Meade, and then he and Hubie de Burgh bought the horse out, I think with the idea of standing him at stud in New Zealand.

‘‘He came to me to prepare for the flight. While he was with me we were just playing around and doing a bit of flat work and a bit of jumping and just hacking him out and letting him be a normal horse.

‘‘And then plans changed. There was an idea to come here and run in two group 1 races and I was offered the chance to do it, so here we are.’’ — AAP