JOE PRIDE NOTCHES HIS FIRST GR 1 FOR GODOLPHIN

Attica in the Godolphin blue grabs Shangri La Boy in the shadows of the post - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

“I was both surprised and delighted when asked to be part of an interview process when Godolphin changed direction a few months ago,” said in form trainer Joe Pride. “I have no idea of the total number of trainers invited to participate but they eventually got it down to nine, and I’m honoured to be one of the team. I was gobsmacked when they told me twenty one of their horses would be coming to my Warwick Farm stables. Like all of the trainers who made the cut, I hoped we could kick a few goals sooner rather than later.”

Chris Waller was the first of the chosen nine to salute for his new clients when four year old mare Amusing powered through H10 going to win a BM72 at Rosehill Gardens on August 2nd. Just three weeks later Joe Pride emulated Waller’s performance by winning with his first Godolphin runner Kerguelen in a BM78 at Randwick. With Chad Schofield on board the gelding powered home after a wide run to win comfortably for his new trainer. Kerguelen ran well without winning at his next two runs but bounced back with a super impressive BM88 win at Randwick on October 18th. “At his current rate of improvement this horse might be competitive in better races at the Brisbane winter carnival,” said Joe.

Joe's first win for Godolphin with Kerguelen at Randwick 23/08/2025 - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

When twenty one Godolphin horses took up residence at the Pride stables in July, Joe had the task of assessing where they were at, and where they were likely to be going forward. He didn’t know what to think about the laid back colt by Lonhro from former well performed mare Savatiano. “He’d never raced but had been around in five trials over a lengthy period of time,” said Joe. “He’d placed in a couple of those trials, but I don’t think anybody had been overly impressed. I opted for two more trials; he finished second in both and went well enough for me to look for a suitable race. He contested a 1400m maiden at Warwick Farm in early September and raced just off the pace from a good barrier. Despite being very unsure of himself, he surged late for Adam Hyeronimus to beat Decorum and Enviable and his career was under way.”

Attica gets his maiden out of the way at Warwick Farm in September - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Joe opted for a 1500m Cl 1 at Kembla Grange for the colt’s second run and came away disappointed when he was beaten fairly comfortably into second place by Horizons. “It occurred to me that he simply wasn’t focused on the job,” said Joe. “It was a mixture of inexperience and an incredibly laid back temperament. I couldn’t wait to get him into a longer race and put a set of blinkers on him. Punters obviously followed the lead because he started a well supported second favourite at $4.20 in the black type Dulcify Quality over the Randwick 1800m sixteen days later. He was never better than three deep at any stage and even wider on the hometurn where he was spotting the leaders seven or eight lengths. He fairly exploded from the top of the rise to swamp the leaders. The blinkers switched him right on.”

The three week gap between the Dulcify and Saturday’s Spring Champion Stakes prompted Joe to give Attica a “tick over” trial at Warwick Farm on Friday October 17th. The colt was never out of a working gallop to finish the softest of thirds to Victoria Road and Miss Hades in a pretty slick open trial over 1200m. It was the perfect “fine tune” before Saturday’s Gr1 feature.

With Attica again drawn close to the extreme outside Hyeronimus opted to ride him exactly as he had in the Dulcify Quality. He let the Lonhro colt amble out of the barrier and settled down in front of only three runners as they turned to the back. Hyeronimus was content to race three wide with cover all the way to the hometurn and wasn’t perturbed when carried even wider on the corner. Attica supporters were a little concerned when he spotted favourite Shangri La Boy six lengths on top of the rise, but they needn’t have been. As he’d done in the Dulcify, Attica let down brilliantly and had the Waterhouse/Bott colt covered a few strides from the line.

Attica was drawing clear on the line to win the Spring Champion Stakes with Adam Hyeronimus in the saddle - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

It was Joe Pride’s first win in the Spring Champion Stakes, and a second for Adam Hyeronimus who’d won the 2023 edition on Tom Kitten in the very same colours. The win took Joe to twenty one Gr 1 successes, while Adam made it number six at the elite level with many more to come for both.

Joe is not yet convinced that Attica is a Derby prospect in the autumn but will leave his options open. He recalls that the colt’s sire Lonhro was never tried beyond 2000m and that his dam Savatiano didn’t win beyond 1400m. Attica will go to the paddock this week with three confidence boosting wins under his belt. He’ll almost certainly resume in the Hobartville Stakes next February with the Randwick Guineas his likely second up assignment. Joe will then consider a start in either the Ranvet Stakes or Rosehill Guineas after which he’ll make a decision regarding the Australian Derby.

Joe Pride is enjoying one of those rides at the moment every trainer dreams about. His Gr 1 win on Saturday came exactly a week after Ceolwulf’s emphatic win in the King Charles111 Stakes at the elite level. He made it a double in consecutive races on Everest day when Kerguelen won the World Pool Hcp. An hour before the King Charles the trainer positioned himself in front of a closed circuit TV monitor to watch his old favourite Private Eye win the Gr 3 Moonga Stakes at Caulfield. It doesn’t come much better than a two state treble on Everest and Caulfield Cup day.

Joe receives the Spring Champion Stakes trainer's trophy from ATC Vice Chair Caroline Searcy on Saturday - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Relief was a major component in Joe’s reaction to Ceolwulf’s emphatic win in the King Charles111 - his first since scoring in the Neville Sellwood Stakes seven months earlier. The trainer intends to keep the five year old at the 1600m trip for the Champions Mile at Flemington on the final day of the Melbourne Cup carnival. “He’s in the 1600m zone at the moment and those big Flemington stretches will suit him perfectly,” said Joe. “He’s by a sire of stayers in Tavistock and he’s already a winner at 2000m, but for now a mile at Flemington looks to be the ideal way to end his current campaign.”

Pride currently has 54 horses in work at Warwick Farm, a number he’s held steady for several years now. He hasn’t dismissed the possibility of growing his team numbers down the track but right at the moment he’s in no hurry. Perhaps the most important pre-requisites for any modern day commercial trainer are horse sense, patience, astuteness of judgement, dedication, and amiability. Joe Pride qualifies on all counts.

Ceolwulf bags his second King Charles111 Stakes trophy - courtesy Bradley Photographers.