28/4/2024  

FWD Champions Mile - Post-race jockey quotes  

BEAUTY ETERNAL - Zac Purton

There was no speed in the race, which gave us the opportunity to lead. The last thing I said to John [Size, trainer] before the race was 'I think the going is a lot better on the fence', he just got into a lovely rhythm and controlled the race and I thought the only chance I had to beat Golden Sixty was to try to put a gap on them and see how we went and today was his day. I always felt there was always something a bit more there but he just always wants to do things wrong in the straight in his races and he can't let down to his full potential - and today we saw that on the rail.  

RED LION - Hugh Bowman

It was a fantastic performance. I expected a forward showing and that’s exactly what we got.  

VOYAGE BUBBLE - James McDonald

It was a good run. He stayed on well.  

GOLDEN SIXTY - Vincent Ho

He ran well. The ground was not in our favour.

When I hit the straight I could already feel he could not pick up with his usual turn of foot. I know it’s a bit difficult. It is what it is, we can’t fight the weather. I was in a great position and everything was close to the speed, but still we couldn’t improve on that ground.  

GALAXY PATCH - Blake Shinn

He ran a good race; they just didn’t go quick enough for him.  

TAJ DRAGON - Andrea Atzeni

It was a good run.

The winner probably got the run of the race but you can’t take anything away from him. He probably wants better ground.  

BEAUTY JOY - Brenton Avdulla

He ran well and handled himself well, it was just hard to get into it.  

ELTON BAROWS - Atsuya Nishimura

He gave us his best for his first overseas trip. This experience must give him a big advantage in the future.  

BRAVE EMPEROR - Luke Morris

He didn’t jump as quickly as usual and I was probably a bit further back than I wanted to be.  

OBAMBURUMAI - Damian Lane

He tried hard but he was outsprinted.  

CHAMPAGNE COLOR - Ryusei Sakai

He struggled to keep up with the pace and he didn’t feel comfortable on the track.