Waterhouse and Waller vie for Victoria Derby, Golden Eagle victory
afr.comSome people get a bottle of fine wine or pair of cufflinks for their birthday. Gai Waterhouse is trying to give Henry Field a Victoria Derby winner.
It would be some gift. Waterhouse might say Gold Bullion is “ready to rock and roll”, but the three-year-old gelding from New Zealand is an outside chance for the $2 million race on Saturday, according to bookies.
If Gold Bullion is successful, it will be Waterhouse’s second Derby success – almost 20 years after her first triumph with Nothin’ Leica Dane in 1995.
Gai Waterhouse with Gold Bullion in Melbourne on Friday. Elke Meitzel
Field, the well-regarded operator of Newgate Farm, a major stud in NSW’s Hunter region, is one of several owners of Gold Bullion, which comes with a storied pedigree that includes 2009 and 2010 Cox Plate winner So You Think and the 2004 Cox Plate champion Savabeel. So far, he’s won two races, and Waterhouse is hoping to make it a third.
“He looks great. He’s a big, strong gelding, and he’s ready to rock and roll on Saturday’s Derby Day,” she says. “Henry said he had a 40th birthday coming up and wants a Derby as a present. I said, ‘done’.”
Saturday’s Derby, a meet at Flemington in Melbourne, marks the beginning of the spring racing carnival that continues into next week with the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday, followed by Oaks Day and Stakes Day. In Sydney, Rosehill racecourse hosts the Golden Eagle.
Waterhouse has more of a chance there. Her four-year-old stallion Hawaii Five Oh, trained like Gold Bullion with Adrian Bott, is among the favourites. It is running against a slew of Chris Waller-trained horses including Kovalica, Age of Kings, Osipenko and Vienna Princess.
The Waller-trained Riff Rocket, meanwhile, is favourite for the Derby. Despite his
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