Birdman hits back in G1 Champions Stakes

MELBOURNE – Cosmic Crusader has the Group 1 Cox Plate (2,040m), but runner-up Birdman got one back on his regular spring combatant at Flemington on Nov 7.

The Cox Plate finishing positions were reversed in the A$3 million (S$2.64 million) VRC Champions Stakes when the Chris Waller-trained Birdman relegated Cosmic Crusader to second in the 2,000m Group 1 feature.

It was their third Group 1 quinella in the spring – having also gone one-two in the Group 1 Underwood Stakes (1,800m) which Birdman won at Caulfield on Sept 19.

Waller said he had visions of a Cox Plate repeat again but was thrilled to see his charge stand tall.

“He hit the 200m mark with purpose and he was running down some good horses,” said the top Sydney handler.

“I could see Cosmic Crusader on Aeliana’s back and I thought, ‘oh no, here we go again’, but he just really launched and he said ‘I’m here’. It was good to see.”

The son of Free Eagle has notched his third Group 1 success of the year, which included the Doomben Cup (2,000m) in Brisbane on May 23.

The A$1.8 million winner’s cheque won by the six-year-old, who is part-owned by a group of Carlton footballers including current and former captains Patrick Cripps and Marc Murphy, lifted his career earnings beyond A$5 million.

Ben Melham has become Birdman’s regular partner and he brought the $31 chance with a surging late run in a solidly-run race – the tempo again set by Land Legend (Ethan Brown) – to get home by ¾ length.

Favourite Cosmic Crusader (William Pike) registered yet another top-four finish – the eighth of his maiden campaign for Andrea Leek that also included his Group 1 Turnbull Stakes (2,000m) success – when he finished ½ length clear of third placegetter Sir Delius (Craig Williams).

Melham considered the Cox Plate the one that got away with Birdman and was proud to see him rebound so strongly.

“In the Cox Plate, he burst through and thought he was the winner, but he couldn’t see the horses out wide with his winkers on. I just reckon that didn’t help us all,” he said.

“I was happy to concede a little more start with the tail wind down the back and coming into the turn, I was happy to get into the three-wide line which was getting some protection from the wind coming at us.

“He’s always the last horse off the bridle and he’s got a good turn of foot and a great will to win. He’s very well deserving of another Group 1 win.”

The Champions Stakes win was Melham’s first Group 1 success in a week in which he finished runner-up in the Melbourne Cup aboard Zahrann, while it was the fourth for the week for Waller, who also won the preceding race – the A$3 million Group 1 Champions Mile (1,600m) – with superstar mare Autumn Glow ($5.3).

The daughter of The Autumn Sun was at her first race at the course and her first run outside of Sydney, but even the most minor inkling of the change in scene interrupting anything at all was put to bed.

Scoring by 1¼ lengths, the five-year-old mare had to shake off a gallant effort from stablemate Lindermann (Damian Lane) as she loomed up on the gelding at the top of the straight to settle Waller’s usually calmer nerves on the line.

“I was nervous because you don’t want a horse like Autumn Glow to disappoint,” said Waller, who bagged a treble on the day with Pinhole ($11) saluting in the Group 3 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2,600m) earlier.

“There’s a massive crowd here today and it was good to see her go through her paces. She had to put up a fight. Lindermann, he dug deep and to come away that last 100m, it was special.”

Buckaroo (Melham) finished third, giving the Waller stable a clean sweep of the top three.

Victorian mare Point Barrow toppled Tempted as she landed her maiden Group 1 victory in the A$3 million Champions Sprint.

The Blue Point four-year-old prevailed with her explosive turn of foot in the 1,200m event that included Tempted, who only three weeks earlier dethroned the world’s best sprinter Ka Ying Rising in the Group 1 The Everest (1,200m).

The Anthony and Sam Freedman-trained Point Barrow ($61) defeated Plaintiff (Jordan Childs) and Skybird (Melham) in an all-mares finish to the first of the day’s three Group 1 races.

It was a proud result for the stable.

“She’s a good mare and I had good confidence coming into the race, albeit with Tempted in the field,” said Anthony.

“She’s been a bloody good mare for a while and it’s been a long time coming. I’m glad she’s got the win at the top level.”

Point Barrow scored three in a row, following two brilliant Group 3 wins at Caulfield, when she exploded late under Mark Zahra to record the eighth win of her 13-start career.

Tempted, who was chasing a sixth straight win, enjoyed a good run towards the outside of the field under Chad Schofield and loomed as the winner when presented at the 300m, but the Ciaron Maher-trained mare laboured late into fifth. RACING AND SPORTS