“I would have been happy to run second to Kemalpasa or beat him by a neck, but I didn’t expect the big fella to win like that.”
These were the words of trainer David Jolly in the aftermath of Behemoth’s demolition job on the opposition in Saturday’s Listed WFA Durbridge Stakes at Morphettville. The giant gelding hadn’t raced since his unplaced effort in the frenetically run TAB Everest last October, after which he had a month in the paddock.
“He obviously had the benefit of some residual fitness from the spring, which meant I didn’t need to drill him before the Durbridge Stakes,” said David. “He stretched his legs in an exhibition gallop between races at Strathalbyn and had a jumpout at Murray Bridge a week later. On the Tuesday before the Durbridge he went up 600m with a companion at Strathalbyn and that was it.”
At a stage of his career when you’d expect him to be racing like a miler, Behemoth has never looked sharper than he did on Saturday. In trotting parlance he landed the 1x1 soon after the start and simply cruised to the hometurn. Presented at the top of the straight by Todd Pannell, he exploded past Kemalpasa to win easing up by three lengths. It’s fair to say the latter is no “easy beat”. Kemalpasa has won eleven races including two Gr 2’s and a Gr 3 for $850,000.
Behemoth was one of four winners at Morphettville for ace jockey Todd Pannell who knows the big horse backwards. “I didn’t expect him to win like that first up over 1100m,” said last season’s premier SA rider. “He’s back better than ever.”
It's hard to believe he's 17 hands and 620 Kgs. Behemoth is as light on his feet as a ballet dancer - courtesy Atkins Photography.
The gargantuan gelding has provided yet another fairy tale story in the relatively recent art of “pinhooking”- the practice of buying foals or weanlings (predominantly weanlings) at bargain prices and offering them for sale at a subsequent yearling sale. Many of these transactions work out profitably for vendors. This one was a disaster for Heritage Bloodstock who shelled out $120,000 for the huge All Too Hard colt at the Inglis Great Southern Sale of 2016.
The weanling was offered by Tyreel Stud who had purchased Behemoth’s dam Penny Banger at a broodmare sale before sending her to Black Caviar’s half brother and eminently successful racehorse All Too Hard. “He was a massive foal and it wasn’t hard to predict how he’d look going forward,” said Tyreel Stud’s Linda Monds. “We made a business decision to sell him as a weanling in the belief his sheer size would come against him in a yearling sale ring the following year.”
Linda was right. The gangling colt attracted little interest at the Gold Coast National Yearling Sale in 2017. It seems Heritage Bloodstock decided to cut their losses, letting him go for a mere $6000 to Sam Lyons of Grand Syndicates. Currently the dual Group 1 winner is in the ownership of ten individual shareholders and four syndicates including Grand.
The big fella had the audacity to prick his ears as he greeted the judge in the Durbridge - courtesy Atkins Photography.
Sadly the mare who made it all possible is now deceased. Linda Monds tells me the daughter of Zedrich missed to Wandjina the year she foaled Behemoth, but conceived the following year to Scissor Kick. Tyreel decided to sell Penny Banger, at the Inglis Great Southern Sale where she made $30,000 knocked down to Darren Dance. Her 2017 filly is now a three year old known as Danny’s Sparkle, and was in the care of Mitchell Freedman when she had her only start at Echuca last June. She came from near last to run a close second in an 1100m 2YO Maiden and hasn’t appeared since. Perhaps somebody decided to abandon thoughts of a racing career and simply let her accumulate value as Behemoth’s half sister.
The “Big B” as he’s now known, was broken in and gelded in Queensland and was a Spring 2YO when he entered the Jolly stables at Goolwa in 2017. “Right from the beginning he belied his appearance,” recalled David. “You’d expect him to be ungainly and awkward at that stage of his development but he was well balanced and moved fluently. There was something about him.”
Behemoth was in and out of work over the next few months and even when he came into the stable in the Autumn of 2018, David intended to give him one quiet barrier trial before turning him out again. “He was going so well by the time June rolled around, I made the decision to give him a race start before the end of the two year old season,” said the trainer.
“I earmarked a Maiden 2YO race at Balaklava but thought I’d miss out when he failed to gain his barrier certificate at the first attempt. His sheer size made him claustrophobic in the gates. I nominated for the race and arranged to give him a jumpout the day before - not ideal but it was my only option. He got the certificate and lined up at Balaclava to finish 5th after racing very greenly as you’d expect.”
Behemoth did so well after the race that David opted to give him one more run before season’s end. He was still very wary of the gates at Gawler seventeen days later and settled down well back in the field after a slow beginning. He finished second to First Diamond beaten only a neck. The trainer was satisfied and the “incredible hulk” headed to the paddock again.
Todd Pannell and strapper Millie Wallace after the Durbridge Stakes - courtesy Atkins Photography.
Next preparation he easily won a 3YO Maiden first up at Morphettville for Dominic Tourneur after which David took him to Melbourne for a BM70 at Moonee Valley. With Craig Williams on board for the first time, Behemoth scarcely raised a sweat in winning by 3.5 lengths. Once more the spelling paddock beckoned.
From that point on the gelding has been on a steady upward spiral. His next preparation consisted of only three runs, all at home. First up he was second in the listed Redelva Stakes followed by an unplaced effort in the Gr 2 Euclase Stakes in which he overraced early and struck trouble in the middle stages.
A quick look at the replay of the 2018 Goodwood Hcp will clearly illustrate that Behemoth should have a third Gr 1 win on his CV. Still a three year old and at only his seventh race start, he was desperately unlucky. Slowly away, he was in traffic all the way and badly held up at the 200m before flying home to get second only half a neck behind Despatch.
By this stage of Behemoth’s life David knew he was training a horse with a unique personality. “He knew how big and strong he was, and used it to suit himself,” says the trainer. “Early on he’d think nothing of jamming me or one of the staff against a wall or a rail in the tie up stalls. It’s a scary experience because of his bulk. One day without thinking, I just gave him a push on the rump as he walked out of the stall with a rider up. He stepped backwards and swung his hind end pushing me onto the rail. He was a bloody pig back then.
“Even in his races he’d sometimes want to lay all over other horses to stamp his authority. He’s arrogant and very clever with it. He’s the equine version of the alpha male. Thankfully “Big B” has given a lot of the nonsense away, and now channels most of his aggression into his racing.”
David Jolly has managed Behemoth expertly from day one. Here he is with the Durbridge trophy - courtesy Atkins Photography.
An impressive win in the listed Penny Edition in Adelaide earned Behemoth a quick trip to Sydney in the search for a pair of eagles. He was unplaced but only 4 lengths behind The Inevitable in the Silver Eagle at Randwick, before producing the run that confirmed he was a looming Gr 1 horse. After travelling three deep most of the way he finished a cracking fourth beaten less than two lengths in a “hot” Golden Eagle at Rosehill. He wasn’t seen again for twenty six weeks.
A dominant win in the Gr 3 D.C. McKay Stakes and a luckless fourth in the Gr 1 Goodwood Hcp saw him out for the 2020 autumn, with a lot to look forward to come the spring. The horse David Jolly had been expecting for so long, finally arrived as a five year old in the early spring of last year. Todd Pannell was on board when he easily won the Gr 3 Spring Stakes at Morphettville, and then it was off to Melbourne for a two pronged attack.
Not many people were on course to watch the big fella strut his stuff in two prestigious Caulfield Gr 1 events, but Sky viewers saw him dominate as favourite in both the Memsie Stakes and Rupert Clarke Stakes. Craig Williams was the pilot on both occasions. That kind of form saw The Star quickly snap him up for their prepaid slot in the TAB Everest less than a month later. Nash Rawiller couldn’t get on him quickly enough and the stage was set for Behemoth and Gytrash to represent SA in the fourth edition of the already legendary race.
Behemoth's second Gr. 1 win - The Rupert Clarke Stakes Caulfield 19/09/2020 - courtesy Racing Photos.
Alas as a horse coming off two wins over 1400m, he was more than likely looking for a mile rather than coming back to 1200m in a race run at a crazy tempo. The big boy was literally run off his feet to finish 6 lengths from the winner Classique Legend, but under the unique prize money structure still collected an “appearance fee” of $450,000.
For 52 year old David Jolly the emergence of Behemoth has showcased a talent developed over a lifetime around horses. His father Peter is still training a handful of horses on a hobby basis, while younger brother Richard is firmly ensconced as one of Adelaide’s most respected trainers. In more recent times Richard has registered a partnership with his daughter Chantelle.
While the majority of Adelaide’s commercial training operations are located at Morphettville and Murray Bridge, David prefers the idyllic environment of Goolwa where the mighty Murray River meets the Southern Ocean. He’s able to alternate his work sessions between the Strathalbyn racecourse only 30 minutes away by road and the spectacular Goolwa Beach which seems to go on forever.
He, wife Sandra and daughters Asha (11) and Sienna (14) adore the lifestyle offered by the historic river port 66kms from Adelaide. David has been training professionally for around twenty years after a long stint as a bloodstock consultant and pedigree expert for the defunct Abcos company which was taken over by the rapidly expanding Magic Millions group in 1999.
He’s maintained a healthy strike rate for two decades with a team rarely exceeding 25 horses. Before Behemoth’s arrival Budriguez was perhaps the stable favourite. This model of consistency posted twelve wins including a dead heat in a Gr 2 Blamey Stakes, a Gr 3 Victoria Hcp and a Gr 3 R.A. Lee Stakes in Adelaide.
Arinos did a good job for the Goolwa team winning seven races and recording ten placings including a dead heat second in an Oakleigh Plate. Another reliable stable flag bearer was Tramuntana who won ten races with a whopping eighteen placings including a good third to Weekend Hussler in an Oakleigh Plate.
With a couple of Victorian Gr 1’s already under his belt David will be looking for the hat trick on February 20th when one of Australia’s most aptly named horses will contest the time honoured Futurity Stakes at Caulfield. There’s a distinct possibility Behemoth will clash with Morvada, a consistent gelding trained by his father Peter. This son of Mossman has a record of seven wins and sixteen placings for $594,000. A couple of recent Gr 3 placings in Melbourne suggest he’s worthy of inclusion in one of Victoria’s most iconic WFA races.
All being well Behemoth will then have his first crack at 1600m in the third edition of the $5 million dollar All Stars Mile for which runners have to be voted in by the public. Behemoth has enough fans in South Australia alone to make the “cut” with something to spare.
To date the Goolwa Goliath has raced only nineteen times for eight wins and four placings and prize money of $2,132,130 dollars - off a $6000 purchase price remember. The horse got his first lucky break when he landed in the stables of a trainer who quickly identified his talent and was prepared to wait for that talent to come to the surface.
In the weeks ahead one of Australia’s biggest horses will get the opportunity to test his big motor against some tidy opposition for very serious money. That’s if you regard seventeen hands and 620kgs as a big horse.
I can tell you David Jolly and every member of his staff go to extraordinary lengths at all times to make sure he doesn’t step on their feet.
(Banner image - A great close up from Terry Hann as Behemoth roars to victory in the Durbridge Stakes - courtesy Atkins Photography.)