Lancaster Bomber’s win in the last at Newcastle on Saturday rounded off a very pleasing few weeks for the Richard Litt stable. It was especially pleasing for the expatriate Kiwi horseman, because the Denman gelding is the very first horse he actually purchased and syndicated.
There were a few anxious moments last August when the four year old suddenly developed an entrapment of the epiglottis which was restricting his intake of air. A simple veterinary procedure corrected the problem and Lancaster Bomber was sent to the paddock. He’s given Richard no concerns this time in.
Only twenty four hours earlier at Muswellbrook, the stable produced the pony sized Wicked Willy to win a BM 58 with Tom Sherry up. “The horse weighs only 430 kgs and is a hot headed little fellow,” says Richard. “He over raced again at Muswellbrook and wanted to get off the track most of the way. He was entitled to get beaten but fought on bravely to win. We’ll spell him now in the hope he’ll give all of this nonsense away as he matures.”
The stable produced only one runner at Gosford on Anzac Day, winning a BM 64 with Kiwi import Amusez Moi perfectly ridden by Lee Magorrian.
It was also one runner for one winner at Goulburn nine days earlier, when the Litt trained Catapult overcame a chequered run to win a Maiden with Brodie Loy in the saddle. Four wins in sixteen days was just the tonic Richard needed after Castlevecchio’s puzzling failure in the Australian Derby on April 4th.
Image courtesy Bradley Photographers - Catapult (Brodie Loy) overcame difficulties to win this one at Goulburn 16/04/2020.
There are few horse trainers alive, who haven’t experienced that empty feeling in the pit of the stomach when a horse has raced poorly, for no apparent reason.
In the few minutes it takes for the jockey to bring that horse back to the enclosure, the trainer contemplates a million possibilities. “What did I do wrong,” is usually the first question to come to mind.
In most cases they’ve done nothing wrong. Quite often the jockey has the answer. Sometimes a close study of the race replay will unravel the mystery. In Castelvecchio’s case there’s little doubt the heavy 8 track was the principal cause of his downfall, coupled with two racing incidents - an early check when Quick Thinker suddenly shifted out and back in again, and a bump from Eddie the Eel on the hometurn when he was floundering in the going.
Richard discovered the most likely cause of the colt’s uncharacteristic effort when he returned to the enclosure. “He’d gone down on all four bumpers during the race, and there’s nothing that will put them off their game quicker than that,” said the trainer. “We also found lacerations on the inside of both hind legs where he’d been speedy cutting at some stage. These were things he’d never done before. There’s little doubt the heavy track got him completely unbalanced and put him off his game.”
It was the worst kind of anti- climax for Richard, owners Ottavio and Wendy Galletta and John Messara’s Arrowfield Stud which had purchased a controlling interest in Castelvecchio last October. The hopes of all parties were sky high following his impressive second to Japanese superstar Lys Gracieux in the W.S.Cox Plate and a dominant win in the Group 1 Rosehill Guineas two weeks before the Derby.
Image courtesy Bradley Photographers - Victorian Craig Williams was the pilot when Castelvecchio scored impressively in the Rosehill Guineas.
There appeared to be consensus among the group that the Dundeel colt should be prepared for another crack at the Cox Plate, but John Messara decided on an early retirement as he did with The Autumn Sun this time last year.
“He went straight to Arrowfield for a spell after the Derby and obviously I was looking forward to getting him back for a spring campaign,” said Richard. “He was away when the retirement announcement was made. The fact that he wasn’t in the stable probably made it a little bit easier. I don’t know how I would have handled the sight of a truck turning up to take him away.”
The course of Richard Litt’s life in recent years borders on the surreal. It was he who talked his father Jim, a registered trainer in New Zealand, into relocating to the vibrant Sydney racing environment. Jim agreed and before long father and son were settled at Warwick Farm with a handful of moderate horses.
Modest success was starting to come their way when the premature death of Richard’s brother Jay precipitated Jim’s return to NZ. Jim Litt made the call to remain at home, but warmly encouraged his younger son to apply for his own licence and give Sydney racing a shot. Richard had already spent time in the employ of Graeme Rogerson, Bart Cummings and John O’Shea. His departure from the Randwick scene coincided with O’Shea’s move into the top job at Godolphin.
One of the horses Jim left behind was a Stratum mare called Klisstra who was in the spelling paddock when Richard took over the small operation.
A few months later trainer R. Litt opened his account when Klisstra won the Braidwood Cup with Tracy O’Hara in the saddle. “A Cup is a Cup wherever it’s run,” recalls Richard. “It was a huge thrill.”
When the young trainer drove home from Braidwood that day, he would never have imagined that just over two years later he’d be accepting a Group 1 trophy at Royal Randwick.
He credits a Nadeem mare called Il Mio Destino for his entry into the metropolitan winner’s circle. “She was another one handed down to me when Dad went home,” said Richard. “Over the next few months she won two races at Canterbury - very important wins for me at that stage of my career.”
The trainer has enjoyed a measure of success with horses culled from the Godolphin team. “I realise it’s almost impossible to improve horses from such a professional operation,” he says. “But you know they’ve been looked after from the outset and every now and then you’ll find one that responds to a total change of environment. Many of my owners are happy to take a share in an ex Godolphin horse, mainly because they know they’ll see them at the races pretty quickly.”
Three notable acquisitions to formerly carry the Godolphin blue are Morton’s Fork with whom Richard won a listed Xmas Cup, Handfast (three wins including two at Canterbury) and Sedition (two wins at Gosford and two in town).
Image courtesy Bradley Photographers - Sedition (Adam Hyeronimus) gives Richard his first Saturday metro training win 05/05/2018.
Richard had some misgivings when Ashkannd arrived at his stables late in 2017. “For a start he came from the Waller stable, and secondly he had a reputation as a difficult horse to train,” recalled the trainer. “It was a big buzz to win two consecutive city races at Canterbury and Warwick Farm.”
Ashkannd was instrumental in bringing Ottavio Galletta into Richard’s life. A leader in the construction industry for many years, Ottavio was scaling down his racehorse numbers and looking for an involvement with a smaller stable. “He joined our stable and we had moderate success with a handful of horses including Ashkannd,” said Litt. “Next thing the 2018 Inglis Classic sale was upon us and Ottavio was besotted with a beautiful Dundeel colt from the Arrowfield draft. He got him for $150,000 and I was delighted to learn he was coming to our stable.
“By the time Castelvecchio was ready to race, he’d developed into a real athlete. Great girth, shoulder and hind quarter with a finely chiseled head. He was never gross, but held his condition throughout a preparation. Broodmare owners will absolutely love him.”
It was obvious when he won his Maiden first up at Canterbury just sixteen months ago that he was one right out of the box. Tom Marquand and Jean Van Overmeire both declined the ride because of prior commitments and Josh Parr became “Johnny on the spot”. Castelvecchio’s two barrier trials had failed to impress the professional watchers and he went to the barrier “friendless” at $61.00.
He showed no gate speed and immediately went back to last of eleven runners. He wasn’t in the race turning for home, but suddenly the heavens opened and the Dundeel colt saw daylight between horses. He swamped Just Zerene (subsequent Adelaide winner) and Wandonna (subsequent city placegetter).
Castelvecchio was at much shorter odds in the $2 million Inglis Millenium at Warwick Farm just over two weeks later, but his chances looked remote when he was last of fourteen at the halfway mark and the widest runner on the hometurn. Such was his acceleration, that he had them covered at the 200m before careering away to make metropolitan winners Accession and Dawn Passage look pretty ordinary. Castelvecchio had arrived with a bang and so had his young trainer.
A third placing behind Microphone and Cosmic Force in the Skyline Stakes convinced Richard the 1400m of the Sires Produce Stakes was a far better option than the hectic, scrambling Golden Slipper. He had to be content with a dead heat for third in the Sires behind the consistent Microphone, but Castelvecchio had Champagne Stakes written all over him.
And so it proved. Ridden a little closer over the Randwick mile, the Dundeel colt had them covered up the rise and completely dominated good fillies in Loving Gaby and Lady Lupino. The rest of his story is well documented - another eight starts for seconds in the Spring Champion Stakes and the Cox Plate and a very valuable Group 1 Rosehill Guineas. He joins the Arrowfield stallion roster with earnings of $2,938,750.
Image courtesy Bradley Photographers - Castelvecchio (Josh Parr) was dominant in the 2019 Champagne Stakes.
Ottavio and Wendy Galletta have acknowledged Richard Litt’s outstanding contribution by appointing him as the trainer of a Deep Impact - Honesty Prevails colt for which they paid $1.9 million dollars at the Magic Millions Sale.” He broke in beautifully, had a good spell and comes into the stable this week to begin his education,” said the trainer. “I’m very grateful to be given this opportunity.”
Ottavio made another big commitment recently when he purchased the landmark Victory Lodge training complex at Warwick Farm, occupied for many years by Clarry Conners. The veteran trainer is winding down a business which has brought him great acclaim.
The property is named after the first of Clarry’s 39 Group 1 winners Victory Prince, and has been home to four Golden Slipper winners (Tierce, Burst, Prowl and Belle Du Jour). Four time Group 1 winner Research spent all of her racing life in the complex, while it was also home base to the horse Clarry believes was the best he ever trained.
The horse in question Mouawad, won seven races from eight starts including three Group 1’s on the trot - the Australian Guineas, Futurity Stakes and George Ryder Stakes of 1997. He looked to have a mortgage on the Doncaster, but was ruled out by vets after a tiny bubble was discovered on his off fore tendon the day before the race. Clarry describes it as the greatest disappointment of his long career.
Most days Richard Litt struggles to get his head around the things that have happened to him in four years. The loss of a brother took his father back to NZ leaving him with little choice but to gain his own trainer’s licence. His results with average horses prompted Ottavio Galletta to entrust him with the training of a special colt.
Not a day goes by without Richard wishing he could have the last two years all over again. Two unforgettable years in which he was able to develop the talents of that special colt. Talents that were to take the handsome son of Dundeel to two wins at the elite level and another stunning win in a $2 million dollar event deprived of Group status by its special conditions. Not to forget that exciting second in the world famous W.S.Cox Plate.
The future beckons. With a little help from Castelvecchio, Richard Litt at age 30 is already established as a commercial trainer who knows his way around a horse.
Image courtesy Bradley Photographers - Richard Litt is a hands on trainer. Here he is with Amusez Moi after a Gosford win on Anzac Day.
A stone’s throw from the stables in the attractive two story house built by Clarry and Maree Conners, Richard’s greatest supporters will be monitoring his every move. Every day wife Laura and young sons Thomas and Liam will be watching twenty four horses going to and from the track. Every day they’ll be hoping there’s another Castelvecchio among them.
(Banner image courtesy Bradley Photographers - This was the moment when Castelvecchio stamped his class! A stunning win in the Inglis Millenium 09/02/2019 with the William Inglis Hotel providing a perfect backdrop.)