Unlikely Hero Leads Charge to Big Dance as Pride’s Red Hot Stable Readies Star
The remarkable tale of Headley Grange, the five-year-old gelding whose career progression reads less like a blueprint and more like a fairytale, has captured the attention of the racing world. His thunderous victory in the $1.5 million Alan Brown Stakes at Rosehill Gardens was not just another win; it was a statement that has thrust him into the position of $4.40 favourite for the highly lucrative $3 million Big Dance, to be held at Royal Randwick on Melbourne Cup Day next Tuesday.
Headley Grange, now boasting an impressive record of 11 wins from 22 starts, is one of many poster children for his astute trainer, Joe Pride, and a living embodiment of the fact that pedigree is not always destiny.
A great sign for the gelding’s prospects in the rich Randwick mile contest is the scorching form of the Joe Pride stable, which is currently operating at a peak. Pride, often dubbed the “Moneyball” trainer for his knack for achieving elite results with unfashionable or less costly stock, has meticulously guided Headley Grange from the benchmark grades to Group-level success.
The trainer’s confidence following the Alan Brown victory was palpable, particularly in defeating a Group 1 winner like Gringotts.
“It’s pretty amazing, he’s done an incredible job with this horse the last sort of six months, he’s exceeded all expectations,” Pride said after the win.
“Beating a Group 1 winner here at the track and distance in Gringotts is a pretty fair effort. He really is bombproof.”
Pride’s praise for his consistent galloper extends back through his campaign. After a gritty win in the Group 3 Cameron Handicap, which saw the horse break a track record, Pride enthusiastically stated, “He has an amazing winning record, this horse.”
Even earlier in his progression, Pride noted, “He is the perfect horse for this time of year… He is a little ripper and never runs a bad race.”
The trainer has repeatedly shown his belief in the horse’s ceiling, even as he continually raised the bar. Following an earlier stakes win, Pride said, “Nice to see him step up to that higher grade today. That’s never easy to do in a high-pressure race with plenty of opposition.” This meticulous management, using each race as a strategic “stepping stone,” is why the gelding now targets one of the spring’s biggest prizes.
At the heart of Headley Grange’s journey is Harden man Bob Manwaring, the breeder and principal owner, who shares a significant stake with a loyal group of friends. Manwaring’s decision to keep the horse was born not of ambition, but necessity. “Being by the stallion that he was at the time, they weren’t really selling that well, so I decided to keep him,” Manwaring explained of his progeny by Exosphere. This early gamble has now returned riches, with Manwaring confirming, “Everyone who did buy into him is over the moon with it. He has literally paid his way the whole time.”
Adding another twist of fate to the story, it was revealed that Headley Grange was once destined for Hong Kong but failed a mandatory veterinary examination, a turn of events Pride gratefully refers to as “the Asian racing jurisdiction’s loss. The commitment of the stable and ownership group to the winning formula is profound.
Manwaring revealed they would bypass the prestigious Group 1 Epsom Handicap—a natural target after his qualifying successes—purely because jockey Adam Hyeronimus could not make the required lighter weight.
“We were always going to try and stick pretty loyal to jockey Adam Hyeronimus because he knows the horse well,” Manwaring stated, cementing the importance of the partnership over chasing a Group 1 glory with another rider.
The association between Headley Grange and jockey Adam Hyeronimus is nothing short of flawless, with the pair now combining for a phenomenal six wins from just seven rides.
The skill displayed by Hyeronimus in the Alan Brown Stakes was instrumental, overcoming a catastrophic barrier draw of 17. The jockey’s tactical genius saw him save ground from the extreme outside gate, demonstrating remarkable nerve and critical thinking mid-race.
“It makes things very easy for me, he jumps well, puts himself in a nice position, and tries hard,” Hyeronimus said after the latest win, a comment he has echoed throughout the horse’s rise.
Hyeronimus has been a key witness to the gelding’s rapid improvement. After an earlier Stakes victory where he was on board, the jockey praised the training strategy: “He came through the grades through the benchmark system. Joe did a great job bringing him through and using each race as a stepping stone, and he just keeps improving, especially since going to Stakes company.”
On the horse’s sheer reliability, Hyeronimus added, “I think I first rode him in January this year, and it’s now my sixth win on him; we’ve won a few Stakes races now, he just keeps delivering.”
Even when the horse was challenged, Hyeronimus noted his fighting spirit. Following a Civic Stakes victory earlier in the year, he observed, “He just found another gear. When they came to him at the 150 (metres), he went again, so that’s a really good sign.”
The stable also worked hard to manage the horse’s propensity to become agitated in the mounting yard pre-race, with the jockey confirming the successful implementation of a new routine: “That’s what was needed and it worked. He stayed relaxed.”
The last few months have been a meticulously planned campaign. The horse had to overcome a minor setback at Grafton due to a firm track, with Pride stating, “I really felt that track was too hard for him and I wouldn’t run him on a surface that firm again. He doesn’t have to have them this wet, but he enjoys tracks with the sting out of them.”
He quickly rebounded with the Listed Civic Stakes and the Group 3 Cameron Handicap, the latter coming off an unconventional “two-week freshen up in the paddock and five weeks back in the stable.”
His latest victory over the Group 1-performed favourite Gringotts, who had the run of the race but faded late, highlighted Headley Grange’s superior fitness and fighting spirit, cementing his position at the head of the market.
The Big Dance, set for the famous Randwick mile on November 5th, is the next destination for the gelding who started as a horse no one wanted, but is now the one everyone is chasing for a huge slice of the $3 million prize.
– Tully Potts
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