RANDWICK WIN BY SIR LES A TRAINING TRIUMPH FOR CRAIG CARMODY

Sir Les (Rachel King) was way too good for talented Benevac in Saturday's 1100m BM72 - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Riding trackwork is not a pre-requisite for people to develop into top horse trainers. Old timers used to say Tommy Smith’s greatest strength was his ability to recognise impending lameness in a horse long before it happened. There’s the well known story about Bart Cummings ordering an abnormal amount of trackwork for Kingston Rule in the week leading up to the 1990 Melbourne Cup. Some questioned his tactics but Bart knew best. The stallion’s winning time of 3.16.3 is still a race and course record. There have been no reports of Chris Waller or Ciaron Maher riding trackwork of late. Stories abound of trainers working miracles by nothing more than the power of observation.

A jubilant Craig Carmody after Intergaze's first Queen Elizabeth Stakes wins 12/04/1997. He won the race again 2 years later - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Trainer and former jockey Craig Carmody has trodden a very different path these past two months with Saturday’s brilliant Randwick winner Sir Les. The gelding has always had a tendency to “run through the bridle” but Carmody’s skill and patience over a long period of time seemed to have the problem under control. The gelding was still a little bit overanxious when a half length second to Overpass in a 1000m trial on May 15th but his effort against some very classy horses didn’t go unnoticed. “He looked perfectly placed in an 1100m BM72 Midway at Rosehill on May 30th,” said the trainer. “He’s usually very quick out of the gates and I honestly thought he’d lead comfortably from the outside draw in a seven horse field. I hadn’t reckoned on Shaggy trying to hold him out for the first 250 metres and he was pretty fired up by the time he crossed. He never got a breather and was under attack again before the turn. Although unplaced he was beaten just over a length, and I was reasonably happy.”

After some deep thought over the weekend and consultation with breaker and renowned horseman Steven Jefferys, Craig came up with a fresh plan. “With the blessing of the horse’s owners we resolved to keep Sir Les away from the races and take him back to basics,” said the former multiple Gr 1 winning jockey. “Steven actually broke him in and had been following his progress closely. He could see he was a slow learner and way too aggressive in his attitude. He was of the opinion I’d need to start from scratch and try to teach him to get off the bridle. His training venue for the next three weeks was the Randwick bull ring, a sand circuit of 800 metres where horses are not in a hurry. For the first few days I’d trot off the mark, but after three strides he’d want to get on his way. I’d literally reef him back to a trot, but release the pressure on his mouth pretty quickly. It took him many attempts before the penny dropped. He finally realised that when he got off the bridle, the pressure on his mouth eased.

Fast forward to 07/02/2026! Craig with Winona Costin after a win with Zenmaster at Randwick - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

“Days turned into weeks and he finished up trotting as many laps as I wanted off the bit. After almost three weeks we transitioned to the polytrack and stepped him up to a canter. I made sure we went to the polytrack on slow days only, when we wouldn’t have too many horses flying past us. I was delighted with his progress. Before long he was cantering off the bit and pretty happy to be doing it. In five weeks we were able to resume his trackwork in the normal way. I’m not going to say he was perfect, but the improvement was astounding. You saw the result at Randwick on Saturday.”

Although wanting to overdo things Sir Les (Chad Lever) was far too good for the opposition in a Wyong Maiden. There was still a lot of work to be done - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

That result vindicated the opinion Craig has held of Sir Les from his first serious preparation. Despite his bullish attitude, the gelding had been impressive in wins at Wyong and Kembla leading up to his failure at short odds in the Rosehill event. “He was always going to be a work in progress but I didn’t expect him to take this long to get his act together,” said Carmody. “Just when we thought he was coming around, he’d fire up again and put us back to square one. We had little option but to start all over again and I can only hope the battle is won because he’s a pretty talented horse.”

Spare a thought for Chad Lever who watched Saturday’s race from the Kembla Grange jockey’s room. The heavyweight rider had ridden Sir Les in all three previous runs, and had contributed largely to his early education at Randwick. Constant wasting over a period of time had worn Chad down to the extent that he recently felt the need for a complete break from racing. He opted for a short trip to Las Vegas and arrived home only last Friday, a kilo or two above his usual riding weight. “Even without the holiday he would have been battling to make 56.5 kgs on Saturday,” said Craig. “Although disappointed he copped it on the chin and headed off to Kembla where he had two rides for Kerry Parker, one with 59kgs and the other with half a kilo more. Both ran second, but a winner would have eased the disappointment of missing out on the Sir Les ride. “

With Chad Lever unavailable Craig turned to the in-form Rachel King with whom he’s had a successful association over a period of time. Only three months ago Rachel won a Midway at Randwick on Zenmaster for the stable when asked to fill in at short notice. “She’d never been on Sir Les’ back so all I could do was tell her about his traits and find a spot to watch the race,” said Craig. “She’d obviously done her homework. When I suggested she ride him off the pace Rachel countered by saying it might be best to let him use his natural speed unless pressured. After beginning brilliantly Sir Les found the front with ease and travelled generously all the way to the turn, despite having favourite Benevac only a length away and outside his heels.

When Rachel King popped the question on top of the rise the gelding did what his trainer has been waiting to see for a long time. He fairly exploded away from last start winner Benevac to score by an emphatic 3.21 lengths with third placegetter She Within a further three lengths away. “I know it’s only winter form but it was a pretty impressive win,” said Craig. “Rachel said he travelled kindly and gave her a terrific kick on top of the rise. It was only his fourth race start when it’s all boiled down, and I’m sure the best is ahead of him.”

Sir Les was airborne on the line in Saturday's Sydney Rooster Partners BM72 - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Carmody’s astute judgement and well known patience was on display two weeks ago when he elected to delay Sir Les’ return. He’d accepted with the horse for a very suitable 1100m BM72 at Randwick but a H9 track rating was of concern to the experienced horseman. “He’s simply not comfortable on that kind of ground,” said Craig. “He was certainly fit enough on the day but I didn’t want to undo all the work we’d done over so many weeks. It was disappointing for me and the ever patient owners but sometimes you’ve just got to err on the side of caution. The trainer’s decision paved the way for a very pleasing result on Saturday.

Those ever patient owners were caught in jubilant mood by the Sky Racing cameras as Sir Les thundered past the post well clear of his rivals. Craig and his wife Keline race the soon-to-be four year old with great stable supporter Kim Harding, and the trainer’s former schoolmates Manny Spinola, John Cistulli and Peter Murphy. “Kim Harding is away in Queensland currently but all the others were there with family members, resulting in a pretty strong cheer squad,” said Craig. Those TV images clearly showed the elation as their horse blew the opposition away. It’s an enormous thrill to win a race anywhere but there’s something special about a win at Royal Randwick.”

An elated group of owners after Sir Les' dominant win on Saturday - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

The famous course also figured prominently in Craig’s distinguished riding career - a career that yielded 1055 wins including Singapore successes. Five of his eleven Gr 1 wins came at Royal Randwick beginning with the 1989 Spring Champion Stakes on Stylish Century then trained by Bart Cummings. He won the 1993 Gr 1 Flight Stakes on the ill fated Angst, two editions of the Queen Elizabeth Stakes on his all time favourite Intergaze and an All Aged Stakes on New Zealander Prince Of Praise.

Craig won an amazing 7 Gr. 1s on Intergaze, but a Gr. 2 win in the 1999 Chelmsford Stakes provided one of the best photos ever seen of the classy entire - courtesy Bradley Photographers.

Despite the authority of Sir Les’ win on Saturday his trainer is resisting the temptation to go to the well again this preparation. “He’s been up since January and has had plenty to think about over the last couple of months,” says Craig. “I believe he’s going to furnish a lot over the next few months and you’ll see a different horse next time. In fact I think we’ll skip the spring racing altogether and bring him back late summer. We’ll try him in better grade, and then decide whether or not he’s up to black type racing in the autumn of next year. When you spend as much time with a horse as I have with this bloke, you get to know them pretty well. There’s something a little bit special about the horse named after my favourite show business identity Sir Les Patterson. Are you with me!