Consistent performer Princess Rihanna got a just reward on Saturday when she stormed to victory in an open 1100m contest at Ellerslie.

The rising seven-year-old mare had finished an unlucky third at the venue in a similar event last month but snared the thick end of the prize this time, courtesy of a well-judged ride by apprentice Taiki Yanagida.

The Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott-trained daughter of Showcasing made her usual good beginning to sit handy to the pace before looking to issue her challenge shortly after turning for home.

Yanagida didn’t panic when held up for several strides at the 250m, extricating Princess Rihanna from a pocket before she charged to the front in the shadows of the post to record her fifth career victory.

O’Sullivan was pleased to see the mare pick up another victory as she comes towards the end of her racing career, while he also praised the ride by his young apprentice.

“She deserved that win as she has been running good races without a lot of luck,” O’Sullivan said.

“She had bad luck there last time and it looked like she might find trouble again on Saturday, but Taiki was patient and got her momentum up nicely when he found the gap in the straight.

“It was a good race for her and when she can get a run like that, she can be hard to beat.

“I was also thrilled for her owners who have been very patient with her all the way through.”

O’Sullivan doesn’t have any major plans for the mare who could well be headed to the broodmare paddock later in the year.

“There isn’t a lot around for her so we will take a look at the programme in the next few days to see if we can find a suitable race,” he said.

“I think she is probably coming towards the end of her career, but while she is going so well it would be nice to think she could get another win or two.”

O’Sullivan also reported that the Queensland campaigns for several stable members had come to an end with the individual horses each going in different directions.

“We had three horses in Brisbane, but they have all been turned out now for various reasons,” he said.

“Dragon Leap was going to run at Doomben last weekend but after working nicely on the Tuesday he spiked a temperature on Thursday morning, so we had to scratch him.

“We’ve decided to bring him home and give him a spell before getting him ready for the spring.

“We didn’t see the point in taking any risks, so he is having a fortnight in the Queensland sun before he heads back to us.

“Spring Heat has been retired and will now become part of the broodmare band for Hermitage Thoroughbreds while Force Of Will has been turned out and will do her future racing in Sydney.”

O’Sullivan and training partner Scott will maintain a low profile over the next few months with just one or two winter gallopers in work, however they will remain busy getting their younger members of the racing team ready for the spring.

“We’ve lost quite a few out of the stable with retirements and the like but we have a nice bunch of younger horses coming through,” he said.

“It’s sometimes hard to know where your next good horse will come from, but it only takes one to get you going and I think with the talent we have on our hands it is going to be exciting to see which of them can step up to the mantle.”

– Kevin Robertson, horsebetting.com.au

Explosive Jack narrowly failed in his attempt at a fourth derby win for the season after finishing a game third behind the Chris Waller-trained pair Kukeracha and Senor Toba in Saturday’s Group 1 Queensland Derby (2400m) at Eagle Farm.

For a few strides inside the 200-metre mark, it appeared history was in the making for Explosive Jack after jockey John Allen switched him off heels to the inside but the Waller pair finished too strongly with James McDonald edging out Hugh Bowman in a torrid finish.

For Waller it was his 15th Group 1 win of the season and his 126th overall and he said Kukeracha had always threatened to win a good race.

“We had a great opinion of him as a two-year-old and he just lost his way a little bit,” Waller told Channel 7.

“Typical story – he was gelded and just taken through the system.

“His run in the Queensland Guineas was good, last start in the Rough Habit was good and today was brilliant.”

McDonald admitted that of the six Waller runners in the race, he would have selected the runner-up Senor Toba if he had the choice.

McDonald all but finished the race for the leading Group 1 rider for the season as he is now three winners clear on eight with just a handful Queensland Group 1s remaining, Explosive Jack ran the $2.60 favourite with Kukeracha at $11 and Senor Toba the second favourite at $6.

– Andrew Eddy, racing.com

The first progeny of The Autumn Sun, Justify, Brave Smash and Grunt are expected to turn heads when the Magic Millions National Weanling Sale gets underway on Thursday.

A popular source of quality young bloodstock, the sale has unearthed a growing list of champion racehorses, including this year’s Golden Slipper winner Stay Inside, who was purchased for $60,000 in 2019.

As well as the strong representation from new stallions, young progeny from in-demand sires including Capitalist, Written Tycoon and Shalaa will be offered through the ring.

The sale also features Shadwell Stud’s dispersal of its weanling stock, with 21 impeccably bred colts and fillies offered for unreserved sale.

Magic Millions Managing Director Barry Bowditch says he expects the insatiable demand at Australian yearling sales in 2021 to extend to the weanling market.

“I think the quality of catalogue we’ve put together for our weanling sale this year is sensational,” Bowditch said.

“The buyers have been on the grounds since Sunday busily looking through the catalogue and the reports I’m getting are that there is a lot of quality.

“It’s always exciting to see the first progeny by these new, young and vibrant stallions and it’s another great line-up of those, but you’ve also got stallions that are making an immediate impact with their two-year-olds like Capitalist and Extreme Choice.

“The industry here in Australia is having a fantastic run, it’s been a great yearling sales series and we expect strong bidding again here on Thursday and Friday – hopefully the results are what the vendors are looking for.”

Some of Australasia’s best mares, including Group 1 stars Arcadia Queen, Melody Belle and Nettoyer, will be offered for sale at the Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale, which begins on Tuesday.

– James Tzaferis, racing.com

The 1-2 from the Frank Packer Plate three weeks ago clearly head the Sportsbet.com.au market for the Rough Habit Plate (2000m) this Saturday at Doomben.

The winner of the Frank Packer was Senor Toba and with that, he went near the top of betting for the Queensland Derby in a few weeks. This race on the weekend is another stepping stone and is favourite to make it a winning one, heading the market at $3.30 after opening $4.50. High Supremacy, a gutsy second, is $4 on the second line of betting after opening $4.20 and touching $3.90.

In terms of one at odds, a stablemate of Senor Toba, Kukeracha, has had specking at a price, opening $15 and with a few each way bets, is now at $11.

– Adam Page, JustHorseRacing

It has been eight months since Dragon Leap has been sighted on raceday, but that is about to change.

Trainers Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott have taken their time with the Hermitage Thoroughbreds-raced gelding after injury curtailed his spring campaign.

“We took him to Sydney in the spring and in the Tramway (Gr.2, 1400m) he gave his fetlock a wee wrench and we have taken a fairly cautious approach. Lance wanted to take his time with bringing him back,” Scott said.

The dual Group Two winner has returned to Australia where he finished sixth in a 1000m trial at Doomben on Tuesday, but still pleased his trainers with what they saw.

“It was pleasing just to see him back on the track and it was really pleasing to see him go in the manner that he did,” Scott said.

“He seemed to be enjoying it and he was going with good energy and was keen to get on with the job, which was really encouraging.

“The main thing is that he has pulled up well and he is going to improve with the trial.

“We have found in the past that something similar to yesterday will bring him on pretty quickly.”

Dragon Leap could make his raceday return in just over a week.

“We are taking it one race at a time, but we are looking at the BRC Sprint next Saturday over 1350m (at Doomben first-up). That is going to give us a fair indication of where we are heading,” Scott said.

“If he puts in a very strong performance, then we can set our sights a little higher. The main thing is that he is looking for pretty good ground.

“Michael Rodd, who rode him (in his trial) yesterday, said the ground was easy to soft and he was just handling it. We have found in the past that he has needed pretty true ground to quicken and extend. That would be one of our concerns going forward, but we have just got to hope the weather plays its part.”

Meanwhile, stablemate Force Of Will will return home for a spell after her sub-par performance in the Listed Gold Coast Bracelet (1800m) when finishing 11th last weekend.

“She is a lot more competitive than that,” Scott said. “She has just come to the end of her campaign a wee bit.

“She had a fair campaign here and then a pretty tough run first-up in Sydney and consequently she has just come to the end of it.

“She will have a good break now, and she will come back a good race mare.”

-New Zealand Racing Desk, racing.com

Former New Zealander Polly Grey has given Chris Waller successive wins in the $250,000 Gosford Cup, aided by a smart ride from in-form jockey Tommy Berry.

Berry had planned to settle the mare midfield but when the speed wasn’t as fast as anticipated, he cruised forward to trail leader and stablemate Wu Gok.

The sprint went on before the corner and Berry got to work on Polly Grey ($2.80 fav), the mare striding to the front at the top of the straight and kicking strongly to hold Aliferous ($11) at bay by three-quarters of a length.

Wu Gok ($12) ran his usual brave race to hold on for third another two lengths away.

“She has been placed very well by the team. I know they’ve had this race on the radar for quite a while with her,” Berry said.

“I was a little bit closer than I expected but a couple of the inside speed horses didn’t show as much speed, so I rode her like the best horse and it paid off.”

The Listed Gosford Cup (2100m) was Polly Grey’s second black-type success in her past three starts following her Epona Stakes victory under James Mcdonald at Rosehill in March.

Berry believes the tough six-year-old still has more to offer this campaign.

“She is quite a big, strong, brutal horse. I rode her before she won with James and I had a tough run, albeit over a mile, and she was still quite big in condition then and she still feels like she’s got plenty of racing (in her) and she’s had a few runs now,” Berry said.

Waller’s stable representative Damien Fitton praised Berry’s initiative to settle the mare further forward when the opportunity presented.

“Ten out of ten, that’s why you put him on,” Fitton said.

“The plan was to be a bit more conservative, probably a pair or two back but she just got across beautifully, she switched off nicely. She was just too good.”

Waller won his first Gosford Cup in 2013 with Moriarty and was also successful with Another Dollar 12 months ago.

-RS NewsWire, JustHorseRacing.com.au