News

Training methods make Lloyd Williams king of stayers

26th Nov 2012

Thoroughbred News - Brian Russell - 26 November 2012

Tanby's strong finishing victory in the Group 2 Zipping Classic over 2400m at Sandown two weeks ago, was further confirmation that big time Victorian owner Lloyd Williams (pictured) is a modern king of Australia’s owners of stayers. It was a success that came only eleven days after the two runners representing the Williams family in the 2012 Melbourne Cup, the Ireland bred imports Green Moon (the winner) and Mourayan (seventh; fourth in the Zipping Classic), also enhanced the family’s staying reputation.

Green Moon, a horse who has been in Australia for nearly two years, is their fourth runner to win the Melbourne Cup, preceded by Efficient (NZ) (by Zabeel; 2007), What a Nuisance (NZ) (St Puckle; 1985) and Canberra bred Whiskey Road gelding Just a Dash (1981).

Lloyd Williams shares with Dato Tan Chin Nam the distinction of being the most successful owner of Melbourne Cup winners since 1900. Dato has been an owner of the Bart Cummings trained Cup winners Viewed (Scenic, 2008), Saintly (Sky Chase, 1996) and Think Big (Sobig; won twice, 1974 and 1975).

In the early days of the Melbourne Cup, a race inaugurated in1861, NSW based Etienne de Mestre owned and trained four winners, Archer (the first two), Tim Whiffler (1867) and Calamia (1878), and leviathan owner John Tait was also successful four times,The Barb (1866), Glencoe (1868), The Pearl (1871) and The Quack (1872). Tait trained his winners.

The key to the Lloyd Williams staying juggernaut becoming outright the most successful owner of Melbourne Cup winners could be their astute selection of material and the training facilities they have developed on their imposing complex, Macedon Lodge, in the foothills of Mount Macedon, 50 kms from Melbourne. Here their private trainer, Robert Hickmott, has over 8000m of tracks to work on, including a 1,600m straight uphill gallop.

It is here that Hickmott has prepared in the past spring Green Moon,Tanby, Mourayan (won the Craven Plate in Sydney), Excluded (NZ) (High Chaparral; seven wins from19 starts, second in the Herbert Power over 2400m at Caulfield in October) and Fawkner (Reset; three successive stakes wins to Group 3 in Melbourne and then second in the Group1 Emirates at Flemington on November 10).

One of the most respected gallopers in the Williams camp has been Zipping, the horse whose name now adorns the race won by Tanby on Saturday. In winning 16 races and earning $4.5million, the Danehill gelding Zipping took out the event under the banner of Sandown Classic in four successive years. He also won two Group1s at Flemington, the Turnbull Stakes and Australian Cup, placed in the Cox Plate three times and fourth in three of four attempts at the Melbourne Cup.

A half-brother to year younger Fawkner and now winner of nine of 24 starts and earner of $664,000,Tanby cost $200,000 when offered by Mill Park, Meningie, SA at the 2008 Inglis Easter yearling sale. He was bred by Steve Bennetts using former Coolmore visitor Galileo (by Sadler’s Wells), now one of Europe’s great modern sires, and Dane Belltar, a Danewin mare who won the SAJC Auraria Stakes-Gr.3, finished second in the Victorian Oaks and third in the Wakeful Stakes and the two Oaks classics held in Adelaide.

Bred by the Emirates Park Stud, Dane Belltar is from Ameerat-Blaadi, an unraced daughter of Kenmare and the Taj Rossi Victoria Oaks winner Taj Eclipse.