Clever ride: veteran jockey Jim Cassidy and Foreteller after winning the group 1 Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday. Photo: Jenny Evans
The irrepressible Jim Cassidy is closing in on a century of group 1 wins after Foreteller mowed down tough-as-nails young stayer Fiveandahalfstar in the Ranvet Stakes (2000m) at Rosehill on Saturday.
The Hall of Fame hoop chalked up the 96th win of his career at the top level after lifting Foreteller, the least fancied of Chris Waller's three Ranvet runners at $31, to victory in the weight-for-age feature. Later he notched his 97th, on Pierro.
Spotting Fiveandahalfstar ($2.60 favourite) a big lead at the top of the straight, Foreteller stormed home after Cassidy weaved a clear passage down the straight. ''The winning post is at the bottom of the straight - not the top,'' Cassidy quipped. ''I travelled really nice and peeled off behind Kelinni and Gatewood at the corner. I had him in my sights and I reckon he had about three lengths [on me]. He [Foreteller] seemed to travel up into it nicely enough and he was able to finish off.''
Foreteller's win capped a remarkable 24 hours for Black Caviar's part-owner Neil Werrett, who also races the Ranvet winner.
Foreteller's stablemate Kelinni was crunched from $13 into $6.50 on course, but failed to let down in the straight after chasing the hot tempo of Fiveandahalfstar.
Waller remained noncommittal about the prospects of Foreteller, which won the Peter Young Stakes two starts ago as the stable's headline horse in his new satellite base in Melbourne, running in The BMW on his home track.
''Prior to the race I didn't think 2400 metres would be ideal and it still may not be,'' Waller said. ''[But] when it's in your backyard you may as well have a throw at the stumps. Horses like this we just take one run at a time.
''I guess that's the beauty of having two stables - they go from one comfort zone to another.''
Waller said he thought Peter Robl and Fiveandahalfstar had run their rivals ragged when turning for home.
''Jim Cassidy actually can lift a horse and his whip seems to go from hitting towards to lifting them upwards - especially when it turns out like that,'' he said.
''I think the Australian Cup [in which Foreteller was seventh at his previous start] was run under breakneck speed and [this race] gave our horse a little bit more of a chance to be composed in comparison to Flemington two weeks ago when he was off the bridle the whole way. That's just Sydney racing … it was a great ride by Jim Cassidy.''
Trainer Anthony Cummings said Fiveandahalfstar would back up in the Rosehill Guineas before taking aim at the older horses in The BMW.
''He just ran out of a bit of condition and I think the two weeks in between runs for him is probably too much,'' he said. ''At this stage the intention would be to run him next week and from there then go into The BMW and the [ATC] Derby.''
Maluckyday rattled home from the tail of the field to finish third, resurrecting his autumn campaign.
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