You may have heard the old poem of "The little girl with the curl" who, "when she was good she was very, very good and when she was bad she was horrid." Or perhaps you're better acquainted with Jekyll and Hyde; one facet of which was sheer brilliance while the alter-ego was a monster. Now meet the equine version! Australia has been renowned for it's fantastic sprinters for a very long time but even they were not prepared for Chautauqua.
Foaled on September 20, 2010 the grey colt failed to make his reserve when eventually being sent to auction. Eventually he was sent to Hawkes Racing, run by Michael, Wayne and John Hawkes and would run in purple colours with a very distinctive, and perhaps intuitive, yellow thunderbolt on the jacket.
In the 2013/14 season he proved himself useful enough running second twice in maiden events before getting off the mark in his third race. After another second place Chautauqua moved up to Group 2 class but was unplaced. Dropping down to Group 3 on his next appearance he stormed away with the Hawkesbury Guineas.
The following season started well with a couple of victories before moving up to Group 1 level and having to settle for second place on both occasions. Here was a very good horse but scarcely much different from many other antipodean runners, but that was soon to change.
One of the major highlights of the Australian sprint season is the Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes over six furlongs at Randwick for which the prize money was a massive $1.4m (Aus).
Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av Racing Ahead.
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Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av Racing Ahead.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Tragedy Hits Racing Family - Nick Townsend reels from shock attack on John Hunt's wife and daughters
Nick Townsend reels from shock attack on John Hunt's wife and daughters. I will be far from alone in recent days in being overcome by emotions ranging from utter disbelief to revulsion upon hearing of the unspeakable acts perpetrated upon John Hunt's family, resulting in the death of his wife Carol and daughters, Hannah and Louise.
AUDIENCE IS ERUPTING
John Anthony reveals the latest top speedsters after another Glorious Goodwood
HORSE OF A LIFETIME
Graham Buddry pays fresh tribute to track legend Sea The Stars - surely one of the greatest ever
IT'S TIME TO TAKE STOCK
Paul Jacobs looks forward to seeing some big on-track questions answered
PLAYING TO THE WHISTLE
lan Heitman flies about to keep pace with a rush of two-year-old Flat action
WINNING JOY ON A BUDGET
Richard Eagle takes a trip to Windsor to check out peoples' route into the port of kings
GIFT HORSES AND FRENCH LESSONS
Robert Cooper finds 'retirement' is keeping him busy
FEUD GETS THE PARTY ROLLING
Karl Hedley savours the Galway Festival action and picks out the summer highlights at Ballybrit
ROCKING THE MONEY BAGS
Simon Nott reveals his recent experiences from trips to Brighton and Ascot
FLYING EVE'S BORN TO WIN
Nick Townsend talks to in-form trainer Eve Johnson Houghton