Photo: Bruno Cannatelli
Group One warrior Mr Brightside (Bullbars) became the first three-time winner of the Gr.1 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) with a powerhouse all-the-way victory in the A$750,000 Flemington feature on Saturday.
It was the 10th Group One victory for the Bullbars gelding, who has had a total of 46 starts for 20 wins, 15 placings and A$17.97 million in prize-money.
Mr Brightside beat Alligator Blood by a length and a half to claim his first Makybe Diva win in 2023, then defended that title against Pride Of Jenni and Antino last September.
After ending his seven-year-old season with an uncharacteristic failure in Hong Kong in April, then resuming with a well-beaten second behind new star Treasurethe Moment in last month’s Gr.1 Memsie Stakes (1400m), some might have suspected that Mr Brightside’s Group One-winning days might be behind him. He was sent out as a $5.30 third favourite in Saturday’s six-horse field, with betting dominated by the Chris Waller-trained pair of Via Sistina ($1.70) and Aeliana ($3.90). But anyone who writes off Mr Brightside does so at their peril.
Regular rider Craig Williams sent Mr Brightside straight to the front, where he was able to dictate terms in a tactically run race.
Mr Brightside threw down the gauntlet to his five rivals with a powerful kick at the top of the Flemington straight. Aeliana, Via Sistina and Antino chased hard, but Mr Brightside never came back to them. He maintained his momentum all the way down the straight and won by a length and a half. Fellow New Zealand-bred Aeliana ran second, just ahead of Via Sistina and a third Kiwi-bred runner in Antino.
“I’m very privileged to be a part of this horse, a part of his development which gives me great pride,” Williams said.
“This horse, he just carries so many racing fans and people. If you love the song, you’ve got him as well. He’s just really captivated people around Australia. He’s the best miler in Australia on his day, and still one of the best even when he’s not. He’s just a marvel – three Makybe Divas.
“When I walked up with my wife today, I said, ‘We’ve got a statue of Makybe Diva now. Hopefully he’ll win this race three times and they’ll give him his own bronze statue as well.’
“I think, after my experience and what we do in Ukraine, it just makes me more grateful to be able to partner up with a horse like him, put on a show and have people come out and support our amazing industry.
“This is what I dreamed of as a kid and wrote stories about at school. This is what every rider in the jockeys’ room works hard for and continues to work hard for – to win Group Ones, and especially these feature races like the Makybe Diva Stakes.”
Mr Brightside has been a cherished flagbearer for the Lindsay Park training partnership of Ben, Will and JD Hayes.
“For JD and Will and I, he’s the most special horse we’ve ever had,” Ben Hayes said. “We’re just the front men. He means a lot to everyone and the whole team.
“He’s a 10-time Group One winner and he’s placed in 12 of them as well and won multiple Group Twos. He’s an absolute champion – no one can deny that now. Maybe people will start respecting him and tipping him!
“It turned out beautifully today. It was a 10-out-of-10 ride. Tactically he got an easy time early and because he got an easy time, they couldn’t catch him, a champion like him. He’s an amazing horse and we’re so lucky to have him.
“We thought he had gone the right way since the Memsie. He paraded beautifully, it was typical Mr B. His coat has come on, but the good thing is, he’s got improvement to come and we’re going to have fun placing him at his next couple of starts. I’m so proud of him and for him to come back and win, to show how good he is, makes us so proud.”
Mr Brightside was bred by Ray Johnson in partnership with his late wife Martha. He was sold as a yearling for $22,000 via Janine Dunlop’s Phoenix Park at the 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock May Sale, where he was bought by Phill Cataldo. He then failed to meet his $50,000 reserve when re-offered at the Ready to Run Sale.
An opportunity later arose for Johnson to buy him back on gavelhouse.com for just $7,750, in conjunction with Cambridge trainer Ralph Manning and good friend Shaun Dromgool. Mr Brightside finished a luckless fifth in his sole New Zealand start at Matamata for Manning, having previously won a trial. He was subsequently sold privately to clients of the Hayes stable via Australian agent Wayne Ormond
