Winners are grinners – Trainer Scott Collings would’ve been all smiles watching a gelding he once labeled “the greatest I’ve ever trained,” win by three lengths on the Kensington Track.
The talented six-year-old gelding Mogo Magic rediscovered his devastating best at Randwick Kensington on Thursday, storming to a three-length victory in the Benchmark 72 Handicap.
The win, an emphatic return to form for the Scott Collings-trained horse, broke a frustrating two-year-and-two-month drought for connections, with his last success coming on July 29, 2023.
Owned by local connections, Mogo Magic, a bay gelding by Duporth out of Zoumagic, has always carried high expectations, having once been a target for buyers from Hong Kong. His career record now stands at 6 wins, 3 seconds, and 2 thirds from 16 starts, with total prize money nudging $400,000.
Pre-Race Drama and the Loose Horse Mayhem
The race was significantly shaped by chaotic events before the starter even released the field. Key rival Verbil (trained by Annabel & Rob Archibald) was scratched, but the more dramatic incident involved the other joint favourite, Big Opinion ($4.60), which threw its chances away by unseating jockey Ash Morgan at the barriers. The subsequent behaviour of the loose horse, Big Opinion, injected a surreal element into the race. The charge forward gelding careered across the track throughout the run, impeding multiple horses.
Racegoers noted the loose horse’s antics were so pervasive that it was as if he had his own money on the line, distracting from the serious competition.
Despite the chaos, Mogo Magic ran a genuinely fast time for the class. His dominant performance at $4.20F earned the Harden owners a hard-won $28,400 for first place.
For the Goulburn-based Collings stable, the win signifies an important turning point. Mogo Magic has been campaigning in tough, high-grade races over his last six or seven starts, consistently lugging heavy weights. His long period without a win had been largely attributed to these heavy imposts in Benchmark 78 and above company.
Thursday’s success in the Benchmark 72 was achieved carrying a lighter 58kg, thanks to the three-kilogram claim of apprentice jockey William Stanley. This weight relief was critical, allowing the gelding to perform to his capability and flash the speed that made him a boom horse in his early career.
Crucially, the three-length victory now elevates Mogo Magic’s official rating to 78. This classification makes him eligible to compete in higher-class metropolitan races, which, counter-intuitively, should lead to him carrying lighter weights as he competes against stronger, but more evenly weighted, opposition. It also means connections can now consider engaging a senior, more experienced jockey, rather than relying on a claiming apprentice, a move that could unlock the next phase of his career.
Mogo Magic was back to his most potent style, leading from the outset. In recent starts, he had been deliberately ridden off the pace, sitting mid-field or trailing the speed, a tactic that hadn’t yielded a win since his undefeated streak was snapped.
Breaking well from barrier 3, the Duporth gelding set an easy, high-cruising speed. He showed a devastating turn of foot down the straight, pulling clear of second-placed Huon (trained by Richard Litt). Apprentice Stanley rode with confidence, notably not having to ask for full effort in the final stages, suggesting the horse won with something left in reserve. This return to front-running form, coupled with the class-busting performance, is a huge confidence boost for connections N P Schofield, C J Ward, A J Hall, M H Cowling, A D Ward, G L Polimeni, L L Young, A S Neate, J A Peterson, Miss R Hogan, Mrs N C Neate, Mrs V J Ward & J R Brown, and Scott Collings, who will now target suitable metropolitan races with the view that the old Mogo Magic magic is definitely back.
– Tully Potts
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