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Foxy Frida wins her second Bracelet as Inglis grads dominate Oaks Day

9th Nov 2023

Outstanding mare Foxy Frida (Foxwedge) made it two wins in the $350,000 Inglis Bracelet from the past three years with another tough victory at Flemington today.

Trained by Andrew Noblet, Foxy Frida has emerged into one of the nation’s most consistent mares whose earnings now sit at more than $1.3m, while her value as a broodmare prospect is even more significant.

Today’s win was the 10^th of her career.

Foxy Frida was backing up from a luckless performance in Saturday’s G1 Empire Rose Stakes – won by fellow Inglis graduate Pride of Jenni – where she never saw clear running down the long Flemington straight.

“After racing Saturday I was on a bit of a hiding to nothing coming here but I knew she pulled up that well and full credit to all the team at home, great job, she’s done it again,’’ Noblet said.

“After the Brisbane carnival there was talk of going to the broodmare side of it but we had a look at all the facts and figures and decided to give her one more season.

“This is huge, it’s the biggest stage we’ve got and it’s great to bring a class mare like her here to get the job done during Cup week.’’

Noblet also won a pair of Swarovski Optik binoculars for being the winning trainer of an Inglis Race Series event.

Foxy Frida’s immediate future will be on the racetrack – she could next contest the Cranbourne Cup in a fortnight – but the likelihood is she will be retired to breed next year.

Chris Watson of Mill Park Stud, who co-bred Foxy Frida (pictured) with Kellie McCarthy and offered her at the Premier Yearling Sale, said the mare would go through “some sort of sales process next year’’.

“Part of the ownership group are keen to race her so the breeders in her would have to buy them out but she’s very valuable now and possibly maybe one we can’t afford to keep,’’ Watson said.

“She always seems to go better in the autumn so we’ll hopefully get some more black type into her before she enters the breeding barn, however that may play out.

“This was a target race for her, we earmarked it early on with the prizemoney increase so it was a no-brainer really to back her up from Saturday and run in the Inglis Bracelet which is a fabulous race to win.’’

Foxy Frida was one of four Inglis graduates to prove successful at Flemington on Oaks Day.

Earlier on the program untapped juvenile Karavas (Alabama Express) maintained the unbeaten start to her career with an impressive victory in the G3 Ottawa Stakes.

The filly, who races in the silks of her sole owner Neville Morgan, had debuted with victory at Murray Bridge last month and brought that South Australian form to Flemington in Melbourne Cup Week and produced the goods again.

Karavas is a $260,000 Premier Yearling Sale buy for her trainers Richard and Chantelle Jolly, from the draft of Yulong who bred the filly after buying her dam All Of Me for $260,000 at the 2020 Inglis Chairman’s Sale.

Importantly Karavas also provided her Yulong-based sire Alabama Express – himself an Easter Sale graduate - his first Stakes winner from just four runners to hit the track so far.

“It’s fantastic for Alabama, she was his first winner and now she’s his first Stakes winner and she looks a promising filly,’’ Yulong’s Sam Fairgray said.

“She was a lovely type as a yearling who sold really well and is now racing that way too.

“With Alabama, being a son of Redoute’s Choice he was well received early but once people saw the types he was leaving, that really started to really build the interest in him.

“We’ve got some lovely ones by him coming to Inglis Premier at Oaklands next year that we can’t wait to show the buyers.’’

In the G3 Red Roses Stakes, Mumbai Muse (Zoustar) led in a quinella of Inglis graduates when defeating Saltaire.

Bred by Robert and Barbara McClure of Morning Rise Stud, Mumbai Muse has raced exclusively at Stakes level throughout her seven-start career which now includes two black type wins – at her two most recent starts - following victory in the Brian Crowley Stakes 12 days ago.

Mumbai Muse is a $525,000 Easter Yearling Sale buy for her trainer Michael Freedman and Julian Blaxland, from the draft of Coolmore.

Her ownership group includes Debbie Kepitis’ Woppitt Bloodstock, the McClure family and Kia Ora.

“It’s such a great thrill to win a race like this on Oaks Day, we bred the filly and it’s a terrific family that we’re developing,’’ McClure said.

“The mare (Mumbai Rock) has produced two Stakes winners and two Stakes placed horses so she’s well on her way.

“We’ve got Mumbai Muse’s I Am Invincible half sister coming to the Inglis Easter Sale next year in the Coolmore draft, she’s a beautiful filly and speaking of beautiful fillies, we’re offering in our Morning Rise Stud draft at Inglis Premier the most spectacular I Am Invincible filly out of a mare called Crown Witness, she’s a star and we’re already excited to offer her to buyers at Oaklands in 2024.’’

And the consistent Najem Suhail (Starspangledbanner) backed up his 3rd-placing at Flemington on Saturday with victory in today’s Listed Century Stakes.

The Robbie Griffiths and Mathew de Kock-trained 6YO was beaten 0.6 lengths by Spacewalk in Saturday’s G3 Rising Fast Stakes but turned the tables on the Godolphin galloper today, beating him by the barest of margins.

Najem Suhail began his racing career in South Africa, having been purchased by Form Bloodstock’s Jehan Malherbe at the Premier Yearling Sale for $100,000, from the draft of his breeder Gilgai Farm. 

Trained initially by Mike de Kock in South Africa, Najem Suhail returned to Australia after two outings where he has put together six wins from 15 starts and more than $400,000 in earnings.

Gilgai Farm will offer quality drafts at both the Inglis Premier Yearling Sale and Inglis Easter Yearling Sale in 2024.