NEWS

Mazu, selected and syndicated by Michael and his brother Chris, is once again taking his place in the 2025 edition of the world’s richest race on turf after securing a slot owned by the racing powerhouse Yulong Investments.

After finishing 3rd in the race in 2022, Mazu is now an elder statesman at seven years of age but hopefully he can still show some cheek. Whatever prizemoney he earns, it will take his total career earnings to near the $10m mark. So win, lose or draw he has been a beauty for his connections.

Headlining the race is the world’s number one sprinter Ka Ying Rising who has come all the way from Hong Kong and is going into the race as a short-priced favourite. His ratings suggest that he deserves his price, however never underestimate the challenge of racing in another international jurisdiction. One only needs to think back to the indomitable superstar in Black Caviar who conquered all before her but only just fell in when travelling to Royal Ascot for the Group 1 Diamond Jubilee.

The lightly-raced Briasa has been a long-term favourite of mine, having been brought along in typical Hawkes fashion and looks ready to peak on the right day. However, he will need to overcome his conqueror from The Shorts a month ago in Joliestar who is second up and always races best fresh. Then one needs to respect Lady Shenandoah, another lightly-raced 4YO on the rise, who has a greater than 50% winning strike-rate but tasted defeat after a horror run in her final lead-up run in the Manikato Stakes in Melbourne. Travelling down and back to Melbourne three weeks before The Everest is not a traditional blueprint for the winner to take however expect her class to kick in here.

Jimmysstar has drawn wide but he was expected to get back in the field anyway so he won’t be too inconvenienced by this. However, this is a class field and he will be spotting the leaders many lengths as they straighten for home. The challenge may just prove a tad too tough even for this seasoned galloper who possesses a devastating turn-of-foot.

While a number of other horses could perform well, it is hard to see the winner coming from outside of these horses already mentioned.

For me, the heart of course says Mazu but the head says to go with the local horse with the perfect profile and the ideal preparation in Joliestar, followed by Ka Ying Rising and then Briasa.

Best of luck with whoever you decide to cheer on and above all else have a great time celebrating Everest day!

Odds-on Everest favourite Ka Ying Rising has immediately firmed in price after being drawn barrier seven for Saturday’s $20 million feature sprint.

The Hong Kong sprinter got the ideal middle barrier for the race, allowing him to sit off the pace if he and jockey Zac Purton should please, with one of the likely leaders drawing outside of him, with Overpass in nine.

Godolphin filly Tempted drew barrier one, while Mazu, who is also likely to press forward, will come from barrier two.

The two main rivals to Ka Ying Rising in the market, Briasa and Jimmysstar, both drew wide in 10 and 11.

Why has this trend occurred and is there any chance of this reversing anytime soon? As things currently stand, I suspect this is something the industry will have to accept. There is no doubt that some trainers train better than others, just like some people perform better than others in all industries. Similarly, some trainers are better at running their businesses than others. However, would the competition amongst trainers be healthier if greater flexibility was introduced to allow them to fully compete on price?

As it currently stands, trainers broadly derive their income from two major sources, daily training rates and prizemoney splits. Yes, it is true that the leading trainers typically charge a higher daily training rate than their smaller peers, a right that they have earned and fairly deserve. However, the difference I would argue is not significant, especially when most horses these days are owned in partnership or through syndicates and the cost is split many different ways. In any event, the fixed daily training rate is generally viewed as being set at a level simply to offset operating costs like stable rent, staff wages, feed etc. The leading trainers, with a slightly higher daily rate, can afford to pay higher wages for quality staff and track riders, which can then assist in maintaining their competitive advantage.

The second major source of income for trainers is prizemoney splits. Currently, this split is fixed at 10% no matter whether you are the number one trainer in the country or a smaller trainer with only a handful of horses trying to make your way. What real incentive does an owner have to go with a smaller trainer when they forgo exactly the same 10% of prizemoney whether they go with a leading trainer like Chris Waller, Bjorn Baker, Ciaron Maher etc or a smaller trainer that has less resources at their disposal. Perhaps competition amongst trainers would be better served if trainers were able to negotiate directly with owners their percentage prizemoney split. This could work both ways. For example, a leading trainer may choose to offer their services for a 15% split of prizemoney which may be supported by owners motivated by historical results, while a smaller trainer may choose to offer a 5% split which may be supported by those owners motivated by price. Perhaps this would lead to some genuine competition in the training ranks in the fight to attract the quality horses (the drivers of higher future income) into their stables and provide the smaller trainers with some hope of seeing brighter days ahead.

The current income model for trainers entrenches stable dominance more than it possibly should. For example, the sustained excellence of Chris Waller has seen him win 15 consecutive Sydney metropolitan trainers’ premierships and good on him. Yet remember this is nothing new, the legendary Tommy Smith won 33 consecutive Sydney premierships back in his day. But is this a by-product of competition not being as great as it could be and would interest in the industry increase if the premiership race was a little less certain from year to year? Imagine for a second if the Brisbane Broncos or Collingwood won this many premierships in a row. Heaven forbid!

Introducing a little more elasticity into the pricing structure of trainers (and perhaps jockeys) may in the long-run provide a more robust and equitable training environment, giving smaller trainers the incentive that they need to stick to their trade, which is currently getting tougher, in the years ahead. This I would argue would be to the overall benefit of all industry participants.

The award comes on the back of a breakout season for Baker, who recorded 157 winners in 2024/25, 53 more than he recorded in the previous season. He finished 2nd in the NSW metropolitan trainer’s premiership, behind Chris Waller, while achieving a winning strike rate of 20.2%.

“This trainer is a great advertisement for Sydney racing. His passion and enthusiasm for the sport is infectious. Bjorn gets as much joy out of winning a midweek maiden as he does when he lands a Group 1 success,” Daily Telegraph journalist Ray Thomas said.

“He is widely respected among the racing media for his availability for interviews with print, radio and television media, and his willingness to assist in presenting his runners and Sydney racing in a positive light. Bjorn is a deserved winner of this year’s Caryl Williamson Racing Media Personality of the Year Award.”

Straight Six Racing’s Michael Ward acknowledged the award announcement by saying “Our owners get involved in racing to have a good time and because they are passionate about the sport. No trainer shares this aspiration and embodies this passion more than Bjorn”.