Great-Britain bred import SELINO scored his first victory on Australian turf in remarkable fashion on Saturday in the Group One Schweppes Sydney Cup over 3200m.
The Chris Waller trained five-year-old gelding proved a length and a quarter too good for the 6yo mare Rondinella with the same distance back to the 4yo mare Miami Bound.
Selino takes out the Sydney Cup for @cwallerracing
— Sky Racing (@SkyRacingAU) April 17, 2021
What a ride from Ron Stewart! #TheChampionships pic.twitter.com/NpuQDvxK2m
Arriving in Australia last year, SELINO boasted a consistent racing career with two wins, five seconds and two thirds from just ten starts. Patiently managed by trainer James Fanshawe for Qatar Racing, he continued to improve throughout his career, and the long-striding horse found his niche once he got to distances above 2400m.
When Sheikh Fahad’s racing manager, David Redvers, approached OTI with a proposal to buy into the Champs Elysees gelding and race the horse in Australia with Sheikh Fahad, with the view of aiming the horse towards the Sydney Cup, it was efficiently decided that he would go to Chris Waller, who subsequently took a share in the horse himself.
Terry Henderson, who was at Randwick for the race said “Selino was a great acquisition for our owners who were initially offered a Sydney Cup prospect and it was an enormous thrill to be able to have his connections from not only OTI but also those involved in the horse via Chris Waller there on the day to see it come to fruition.”
“He (Selino) was sent to me in very good form. They (the owners) might’ve lost a bit of confidence in me when they saw him going around and running in 2000m races, 2600m races. But we’ve said all along stick to the confidence of running in this race [2021 Schweppes Sydney Cup]. He’s an extreme distance horse, and he certainly showed it today,” said Chris Waller.
Finishing fourth in the Group Two Chairman’s Quality Handicap just last Saturday behind fellow OTI stayer, Quick Thinker who won the race, the confidence in this horse’s ability never wavered from his owners as well as his trainer, “Mr (Terry) Henderson sent me a message on Saturday morning and said ‘How come he is drifting in the betting’? And I said, ‘Anyone asking that question just tell them to double their bet’.
“So hopefully a few people did take some notice.
“It’s the race he has been set for all along so it’s very rewarding.”
Allocated a light-weight of just 50 kilograms and bottom saddlecloth No. 16, it was decided that former Sydney apprentice Ron Stewart who now resides in Queensland, would pilot the gelding in the $2 million race on day two of The Championships, a ride that would award the 37-year-old his first Group One in Australia, “He was a tough ride, but it kept unfolding nicely for us,” Stewart said.
“It certainly wasn’t easy, he was quite strong throughout, but I could see that in his replays he has done that in the past.
“When I straightened up down the side there with 1000 metres to go with plenty of horse there, I thought ‘Ok, we’ve got no weight on our back, catch me if you can’.”
Selino will now commence his campaign toward the 2021 Melbourne Cup, a journey we are excited to undergo with his loyal connections.
