Jockey Hugh Bowman, regular pilot of Australian supermare Winx (Aus) (Street Cry {Ire}), will not be able to partner the Chris Waller trainee in the G2 Apollo S. at Randwick on Feb. 17 after he failed in an appeal to have a careless riding ban reduced at a hearing on Monday.
Bowman told www.racing.com, “I really believed that we had a case to come here with. I wouldn't have just come here in the hope that if I asked politely they'd give me reduction–we really felt we had a case. It was heard fairly so that's all I can ask for. It's not the end of the world. Being suspended for careless riding is part and parcel of what we do and I think for the sake of safety and fairness of horse racing, it is important that we ride with due care.”
Winx ran fifth in a Monday barrier trial (video) at Rosehill in the wake of The Everest hero Redzel (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}), who covered the 1000 metres in :58.2. Slow to begin, the bay was asked for little by Bowman and finished up well.
“She doesn't go out with the mindset in a trial as compared to a race,” said a pleased Bowman to racenet.com.au. “It's interesting how she knows it's not gameday. She was good in the barriers and seemed a lot more alert. It was all pretty smooth and can head to the races now, wherever that may be. We know what's under the bonnet. So, we'll wait for prizemoney for that.”
Her start in the Apollo is not a guarantee, and Bowman still faces an appeal in New Zealand. Waller was quick to note how valuable Bowman is to Team Winx and did suggest some alternatives depending on where connections decide to run.
He told the Sydney Morning Herald, “He's been such a vital part of her success, as we've seen a number of times. It's still two weeks away from her planned first-up run in the Apollo but, if we need to make changes, we'll do that when required to do so. Does she need to race in the Apollo? Are there bigger targets? She doesn't have to be racing every week. We've seen before she races well fresh, you can space her races.”
Waller said, “There's lots of options. We don't want to make things too difficult, but obviously going to Melbourne for the [G1] Futurity [S. over 1400 metres at Caulfield on Feb. 24] is a possibility. It's unlikely but it's a possibility. We could even go first-up in a [G1] Chipping Norton [S. at Randwick on Mar. 3], so there's lots of options there.”
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