Trainer Mitchell Freedman and those who backed the favourite Skybird may have only just begun to relax, depending on when you’re reading this, as a peculiar habit almost cost the mare the Gilgai Stakes at Flemington.
Sent out as the $2.90 market favourite, Skybird seemed destined for a straightforward win with jockey Ben Melham easing the six-year-old mare down significantly in the closing stages. This allowed visiting Perth jockey Austin Galati and the $6 chance Smooth Chino to surge late, narrowly missing by a short-half-head.
“She’s got a big handbrake on her and when you stop, she stops,” Freedman stated.
“I think we were pretty lucky that the visiting rider mistimed the winning post a little bit there otherwise he might have got over the top of us.
“Anyway, we’ll take the win. We’re relieved and we’re happy to get the win.”
The win ended a 19-month drought for Skybird, whose previous victory was in the Group 1 Lightning Stakes (1000m) at Flemington in February 2025.
“She was well placed by the team and they’ve done a great john prepping her up off the back of the Queensland campaign and we’re thrilled to get back in the winners’ circle with her because she’s had a fair few hard luck stories since that Lightning Stakes win,” Freedman added.
The primary target for Skybird is the Group 1 Champions Sprint (1200m) on the final day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival, but her intermediate racing plans are yet to be finalised.
“We’d love to see her in the Champions Sprint,” Freedman commented.
“What we do now, we might head up to Sydney in a couple of weeks’ time. There’s some good money there to chase, otherwise we might see her on Cox Plate Day here back in trip. Plenty of options for her.”
Stewards charged jockey Ben Melham with failing to ride his mount out to the completion of the race. The 25-time Group 1 winning jockey entered a guilty plea and was fined $2,000.
“She’s a very good sprinter on her day but she needs a few things in her favour,” Freedman concluded.
“When she can get the run like that cuddled up, she’s got an electric turn-of-foot but don’t stop riding her.”
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