• The week’s significant milestones
1 Jessica Marcialis
France: A slice of history was made at ParisLongchamp on Sunday [Oct 4] when Tiger Tanaka won the Prix Marcel Boussac on the Arc undercard.
The rags-to-riches filly, who won three claimers earlier in the season, was ridden by Jessica Marcialis, who became the first female jockey to ride a G1 winner in France.
“I’ve made history,” exclaimed Marcialis, 30. “I want to say to all the mums that we can do it. Be strong.”
Former Fegentri champion amateur Marcialis is the wife of Tiger Tanaka’s trainer Charley Rossi, whose uncle Frederic had 35 minutes earlier landed the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere with Sealiway.
Breeders’ Cup ruled out for history makers Jessica Marcialis and Tiger Tanaka
7.4m Midnight Bisou
USA: Champion racemare Midnight Bisou was retired last week after fracturing a sesamoid in her off-fore fetlock. Trained by Steve Asmussen, she won 13 of her 22 starts, among them five G1 events, namely the Santa Anita Oaks, Cotillion, Apple Blossom, Ogden Phipps, and Personal Ensign.
The five-year-old’s career prize-money total of $7.47 million includes second-place purse money for the inaugural Saudi Cup in February, the result of which is still in dispute owing to drug allegations involving Jason Servis, trainer of the winner Maximum Security.
11 Melody Belle
New Zealand: New Zealand’s leading trainer Jamie Richards had a one-two in the G1 Windsor Park Plate on Saturday [Oct 3] with his high-class mares Melody Belle and Avantage, with the former just getting the nod to complete a hat-trick in the 1m contest at Hastings.
The NZ horse of the year was winning the 11th G1 of an illustrious career – ten at home plus last year’s Empire Rose Stakes at Flemington. The six-year-old has 16 victories from 33 starts altogether.
5 Chris Waller
Australia: Chris Waller dominated the the Turnbull Stakes at Flemington Saturday [Oct 3] with a 1-2-3, Very Ellegant beating stablemates Toffee Tongue and Finche in a finish of short heads.
It was the fifth time in six years that Sydney’s top trainer, who watched on from Randwick, had claimed the G1 event following Preferment (2015), Winx (2017, 2018) and Kings Will Dream (2019). All three horses are set to run next in the Caulfield Cup on October 17.
1,300 Tony Cruz
Hong Kong: Dual HK champion trainer Tony Cruz reached the 1,300-winner mark with a double at Sha Tin on Thursday [Oct 1].
Former John Moore-trained Computer Patch blew away his rivals under Joao Moreira on his second start for Cruz in the G3 National Day Cup Handicap before Circuit Hassler took a Class 5 handicap two races later with Matthew Chadwick in the saddle.
900 Caspar Fownes
Hong Kong: Enfolding charged home to win a Class 3 handicap on the Sunday [Oct 4] card at Sha Tin to provide trainer Caspar Fownes with his 900th HK success.
“I haven’t been training for that long really but 900 wins is a good milestone and I’m looking forward to the 1,000,” said Fownes, who had his first licence in 2003/04. “That’s the next target and hopefully we’ll get that in the next two seasons.”
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