Beers for Baker as Bonneval cleared for Caulfield Cup

Ben Dorries - Thursday October 19

Relieved Murray Baker was off to have a beer after Bonneval was cleared to run in Saturday's Caulfield Cup, ending five days of speculation on whether the Kiwi mare would start in the rich race.

Murray Baker was keen to have a beer (or several) after Bonneval was cleared to run in the Caulfield Cup

Baker felt the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders late on Thursday and also felt justified as he had insisted for several days there was nothing wrong with his mare.

"I'm relieved it's all OK, now I can go and have a beer and that's what I'll be doing," Baker said.

Bonneval was inspected by two Racing Victoria vets on Thursday afternoon who cleared her to run in Saturday's Caulfield Cup, a day after RV vets had found she was "one out of five lame".

RV chairman of stewards Terry Bailey was also at the Thursday afternoon inspection of Bonneval, with the mare trotting up to the satisfaction of the vets.

"Two of our vets looked at her and we also got his (Baker's) vet to do scans of the front leg," Bailey said.

"Those scans showed nothing of concern and she trotted up OK.

"She has been passed to race in the Caulfield Cup."

Baker had always been convinced the mare had been fine to run in the Caulfield Cup despite suffering cuts to her offside hind leg and being found to be lame in her near side leg after last Saturday's Group I Caulfield Stakes.

Jockey Kerrin McEvoy also insisted the mare was sound in her action when he galloped her on the dirt at Flemington early on Thursday morning.

Bonneval has drifted to as much as $9.50 with some bookmakers in Caulfield Cup betting.

Advertisment
More Reading...
Hong Kong Summed Up - Dec 22
A double for Brave Smash, including a new winner, also new winners for Hellbent and Kermadec, and three yearling catalogue updates amongst seven Australasian bred winners at Sha Tin on Sunday.
Four MM Lead Ups for Icarian Dream - what are the stats?
Two-year-old filly Icarian Dream’s win in the B.J. McLachlan Stakes at Eagle Farm on Saturday will see her head into the Magic Millions 2YO Classic having had four starts before year’s end, which might seem a lot in this day and age – but is it? We’ve had a look.
No Shock in Supernova
The good times keep on rolling for connections of winning machine Here To Shock(NZ) (Shocking) who plundered the inaugural A$1 million Supernova at Pakenham over his favoured 1400m distance for trainers Ben, Will and JD Hayes.
Is He the Next Via Sistina or Buckaroo?
The Fastnet Rock x Galileo cross is a formidable one and has produced this spring’s elite Group I winners Via Sistina (IRE) and Buckaroo (GB) with another lightly raced import bred the same way in Gilded Water (GB) going two for two in Australia with a cavalier win at Randwick on Saturday.
Stakes Racing Catalogue Updates Last Week
A dozen stakes updates in the past week into catalogues for yearlings coming up.
Sires With Winners - Saturday December 21
Here is the full list of 95 stallions which had winners throughout Australasia today with winners and result details.
Zoustar Mare Wins for Te Akau - Half-Brother for K1
Consistent sprinting mare Egyptian Queen was rewarded for a string of solid performances at Te Rapa on Saturday, powering away with the Lodge Real Estate 1200.
Arriving Home Goes Two for Two – Three-Quarter Brother for MM 2025
Talented I Am Invincible filly Arriving Home does her best work on the line and we saw it when she scored on debut at Warwick Farm earlier this month and again when she got there in the last stride to win at Randwick on Saturday.
Verdi's Gritty Goldman wins Pakenham Cup
One-time Melbourne Cup favourite Goldman has bounced back to winning form for the first time in more than 18-months when leading throughout to score in the Listed Pakenham Cup (2500m) on Saturday.
Another Stakes Win For This Burly Enigma - Leave The Whip At Home
Enigmatic is a word often bandied about in racing but it certainly sits well upon the ample shoulders of Cannonball, a big odds winner of the Listed Magic Millions Falvelon at Eagle Farm on Saturday.