Emotional Hayes hails Mr Brightside's return

Moments after the post-race cheers for Beiwacht had died down as the Gr.1 Memsie Stakes field returned to scale, another mounting yard celebration roared into action.

It didn’t come from the stable of the runaway winner, but rather from another large group of connections who could have easily passed themselves off as winning owners such was their unbridled delight at what they had just seen.

The Mr Brightside (NZ) (Bullbars) crew felt just like winners in the moments after the first Victorian Group One race of the season. Their nine-year-old, who was having his first run for 2026 due to fetlock issues, had run bravely for second and in doing so, erased any of the fears that the magnificent ride with the former Kiwi over the past five seasons might be coming to an end.

The performance hit co-trainer Ben Hayes harder than he thought it might. “It’s hard to explain just how I feel,” he said. “So proud and so emotional after the race. It really got to me.

“He’s an amazing horse. He just kept fighting back and his strongest work was through the line. We’ve never shown him at trackwork, and it just shows, he turns up on race day.”

The Lindsay Park team don’t have to think too hard about what to do next with the winner of more than $19 million as he had won the past three Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington.

“We’ll either take on Sheza Alibi (in the Makybe Dica Stakes in two weeks) or go to Sydney and take on Autumn Glow,” Hayes said. “But I think we’ll stay here and go for a fourth Makybe Diva.

“He’s always been lazy at trackwork so I’ve never been confident going into a race, but we had him the most forward we’ve ever had him going in first-up and to tell you the truth, it’s the best he’s looked first-up so he’s going to thrive through the spring.

“He’s going to look better and better every start. He’s sound and happy and he’s showed everyone he’s still go it.

“I was emotional after the race, and I didn’t expect that but he’s just such a fabulous horse.”