First Chorus earns black-type opportunity

In-form mare First Chorus (NZ) (Ghibellines) has a spring black-type feature in her crosshairs after carrying on her rich vein of winter form in Saturday’s A$150,000 Tobin Brothers Celebrating Lives Handicap (1600m) at Caulfield.

The New Zealand-bred Ghibellines mare is now a seven-time winner from 15 career starts, with another four minor placings and A$393,860 in stakes. Following Saturday’s Caulfield heroics, she will be given the opportunity to further enhance that record in the A$200,000 Listed Heatherlie Stakes (1700m) at the same venue on August 29.

“The Heatherlie gives us a chance to catch those spring horses napping a little bit with our winter residual fitness,” syndicator Brad Spicer said.

“If we lost this race today, we were going to send her to the paddock before aiming her at the Belle of the Turf (Gr.3, 1600m) in December. But now I think we’ll probably go to the Heatherlie.”

Saturday’s Benchmark 100 handicap was the four-year-old’s eighth start in a campaign that began with a win at Pakenham on March 26. She headed to Caulfield second-up on April 11 and was beaten by a nose in a photo finish, then put together a treble of Caulfield wins on May 30, July 11 and on Saturday.

First Chorus was ridden by apprentice jockey Luke Cartwright, whose 1.5kg claim reduced her weight to just 51.5kg. After taking up a handy position behind the front-running Magnaspin (Magnus), First Chorus asserted her superiority in the straight and went clear to win by two and a quarter lengths.

“It was a bit of a tricky map, with no obvious speed horse,” Cartwright said. “Magnaspin was one that was likely to put himself there, but there wasn’t much else. So, with no weight on her back, we decided to let her be positive and sit in the first two or three. We ended up getting a nice trail on the back of Magnaspin.

“From the 600m, I let her improve. The quicker she went, the harder she grabbed the bridle. When I went for her, she just took off. She’s had a massive winter and she just keeps getting better.”

That opinion was echoed by the mare’s trainer Lindsey Smith.

“That looked like maybe her best win,” he said. “She had the race in her keeping a long way out.

“She’s not a hard horse to ride, but Luke is a good rider and did a great job today.

“She’ll go and have a few days at Rosemont now to freshen up. I know this was her eighth start this prep, but her behaviour and demeanour are very good. With those few days at Rosemont to freshen up, there’s no reason not to push on.

“There’s a race like the Heatherlie that we can target to try to maximise her future.”

First Chorus is by former White Robe Lodge stallion Ghibellines. She was bred by Dean Lawrence with his mother-in-law, Diana Duff-Staniland, along with Paul Duffus. She was purchased privately by Spicer Thoroughbreds.

She is a full-sister to seven-time winner Bellini Miss (NZ) (Ghibellines), with the pair out of the winning O’Reilly mare Broadway Miss (NZ).