Moreira, in the same silks, lands the 2023 G1 Inglis Sires with Militarize
A decade after first meeting at the inaugural China Equine Cultural Festival in Hohhot, China in 2013, one of the world’s leading jockeys and most notable owners reunited to enjoy success in the AUD1,000,000 G1 Inglis Sires’ (1400m) at Sydney’s Royal Randwick.
The storyline is a wonderful aside for an ownership syndicate that had enjoyed an wondrous season to date and races a colt in Militzarize who is undoubtedly on the up and up.
Under Moreira’s deft hand, Militarize secured the spoils on the opening day of Sydney racing’s The Championships in China Horse Club’s iconic red and yellow silks and returned to rapturous applause from connections of a syndicate involving Newgate Farm / SF Bloodstock / Go Bloodstock / Trilogy Racing and co. Among the throng was Teo Ah Khing, Chairman of China Horse Club, who had invited Moreira to China at a time when his talents had yet to be promoted in Hong Kong.
The striking Militarize thrived with a step up in distance to pull clear of ‘stablemate’ Don Corleone and deliver the colts’ syndicate the ‘major’ it was coveting. The syndicate has enjoyed a slew of wins from its two-year-old colts this season and the ‘one two’ in a G1 further franked the teams achievements in Australia’s three most significant juvenile races to date in season 2022/2023:
- 2nd G1 Blue Diamond Stakes (Don Corleone)
- 3rd & 4th G1 Golden Slipper (King’s Gambit & Don Corleone)
- 1st & 2nd G1 Inglis Sires’ (Militarize & Don Corleone)
It was also the third occasion in only nine years that China Horse Club has participated in the ownership of the winner and the second time with Newgate and partners. Notably, the previous Sires winners Pride of Dubai (2015) and Invader (2017) have both gone on to sire G1 winners.
“It has been an exceptional season and the performances of Militizarize and Don Corleone under trying conditions were outstanding,” said Mike Smith, China Horse Club’s Australasian Representative.
“Our syndicate is focused on sourcing and racing elite stallion prospects and this result frank the effort and investment made in this exercise. Credit to the entire syndicate and to Chris Waller and to Joao who we have history with.”
Moreira was elated with the response from Militarize who lost all chance in the Golden Slipper when caught in the backwash of a falling horse.
TAK and jockey Joao Moreira at the 2013 CECF Hohhot
“[Militarize’s] last run [in the Golden Slipper], you could forget about that run because he got involved in an incident throughout the race. Now today he showed his quality. Early in the day I mentioned that some horses were going to struggle in the surface, but he just floated on top of it.
“He’s such a nice horse. He kind of floated on the surface which not many horses would be able to considering the track is quite heavy today. Getting a good gate, putting himself in the right spot, he was the winner a long way from home.”
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