A notable New Zealand influence on Saturday’s stellar raceday at Caulfield culminated with A$3 million Gr.1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) success for South Island owner Glenn Ritchie and breeder Richard Rutherford.
Autumn Boy carried Ritchie’s red, gold and blue colours to Guineas glory over runner-up Planet Red, who himself was a $260,000 purchase from the 2024 New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale.
Ritchie, who also races Saturday’s Gr.3 Barneswood Farm Stakes (1400m) placegetter Miss Ziggy, is the former owner of the Ritchies transport company. He made headlines earlier in the year when he teamed up with trainer Chris Waller and Mulcaster Bloodstock to buy the $2.4 million sale-topping full-sister to multiple Group One winner Orchestral at Karaka in January.
Autumn Boy’s Guineas success followed on from New Zealand-bred gelding Globe’s triumph in the Gr.1 Might And Power Stakes (2000m) earlier in Saturday’s Caulfield card, while Transatlantic – a son of New Zealand-bred Gr.1 Australian Oaks (2400m) winner Gust Of Wind – edged out Kiwi-breds Evaporate and Leica Lucy to take out the Gr.1 Toorak Handicap (1600m).
Rutherford, renowned for his Baltana Stud in North Canterbury, bred Autumn Boy out of his homebred Savabeel mare Rosegarden. She is an unraced daughter of O’Reilly Rose, who won nine races up to Group Three level and also placed in the Gr.1 New Zealand Stakes (2000m).
Autumn Boy was offered by Amarina Farm during the 2024 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale, where Waller Racing and Mulcaster Bloodstock bought him for A$200,000.
Waller, who also trained Autumn Boy’s sire The Autumn Sun to win the Caulfield Guineas in 2018, guided the colt through a perfect two-start, two-win preparation as a two-year-old that culminated in a scintillating Listed Tattersalls Stakes (1400m) victory at Eagle Farm in June.
Autumn Boy opened his three-year-old season with a second in the Gr.3 Ming Dynasty Quality (1400m) and a seventh in the Gr.1 Golden Rose (1400m). Waller believed he was crying out for the 1600m distance of Saturday’s Guineas, and an outstanding victory proved that point.
“We’re proud of all the horses that come through the stable, but when we’ve had champions like The Autumn Sun and we’ve got sons and daughters, it’s pretty special,” Waller said. “We won the Epsom (Gr.1, 1600m) with Autumn Glow last week, and now it’s a super colt with Autumn Boy. It’s pretty special.
“This always looked like his race. We like to identify talent and then try and get them to that big-ticket item. Today’s such an important race in the horse’s career, a chance for a colt to announce themselves on the big stage. Glenn Ritchie and his wife have been so supportive of the stable. They’ve become good friends of ours and kept investing, kept investing, and we’ve managed to buy them a really nice horse.
“As a young horse, before he even trialed, we were getting positive feedback. When he trialed, it was positive. When he had his first run, he beat a short-priced favourite from the stable at a big price. Everything’s been positive, we took him to Queensland and gave him a trip away. I think we did that with his dad as well, maybe all of our Caulfield Guineas winners. It’s just about experience, we know they’ve got talent and harnessing that.”
Waller was largely unfazed by Autumn Boy’s defeat in the Golden Rose on September 27.
“That race was run in track-record time,” he said. “Full credit to the winner (Beiwacht), he led them up and won. The backmarkers just didn’t quite get into the race. We didn’t lose faith. The ratings people and our form guys said he’s the one, and sure enough they were right.
“The sectional timings suggested he actually ran quite well. It was his first time in the big dance or the big-time races. He’s come through the run well. He’s come down here with plenty of time. The team down here have done a great job. We brought him to Caulfield, we ticked all the boxes, and everything suggested he was ready to run a big race.”
Jockey Damian Lane had Autumn Boy handily placed in fifth spot in the Guineas on Saturday, then switched across heels and angled him into clear air on the outside at the home turn.
Autumn Boy warmed into his work and strode to the lead with 150m to run, going on to beat the late-finishing Planet Red by three-quarters of a length with another two lengths back to the third-placed Observer.
“He’s a beautiful colt that just takes everything in his stride,” Lane said. “He’s very easy to deal with and had a great turn of foot when needed. You need that to win these big races, and when he joined in, he really joined in.
“I had a great run. I was able to use my barrier speed, which was good, but then just found myself in a bit of a tricky spot in the corner. Once I navigated that, he put the race away pretty quick. Very easy horse to handle, and as a result, had a nice run.”
Autumn Boy has now had five starts for three wins, a second and just over A$2 million in prize-money.