Chautauqua winning a Flemington G1 in the 2016 Black Caviar Lightning.
© Racing Photos
By Andrew Eddy
Flemington will play host to two world beaters this Saturday as aside from Winx’s attempt at an extraordinary 28th consecutive victory in the Turnbull Stakes, the freshly-retired Chautauqua is set to officially farewell Melbourne racing.
The Victoria Racing Club confirmed on Monday that ‘The Grey Flash’, who has wowed race goers for the best part of four seasons with his race track performances and his antics, will be given a fitting send-off with the eight-year-old to parade in the mounting yard between races three and four.
Winx, of course, is the world’s leading thoroughbred while Chautauqua held the title of the world’s premier sprinter for some time over the past few seasons.
The combination of both champions is sure to attract a massive crowd to racing’s headquarters as given Cox Plate Day is all but booked out at the end of the month, Winx’s Turnbull Stakes run could provide the final chance for Melbourne racegoers to see her perform in the flesh.
Saturday should finally prove a stress-free day at the races for the grey as well as for his thousands of supporters as he will not be asked to jump out of the barriers – a process he has not completed successfully for much of the year.
Chautauqua was retired last Friday night after he again failed to jump from the barriers in a specially-organised trial that was hoped could lift the racing ban stewards had applied last season. Instead, it confirmed his racing days were finished.
Fans of the retired grey can catch up with him for a final farewell at the horse stalls from about 1pm. After he parades in the mounting yard, he will return to the stalls before heading back to his Flemington stable at Hawkes Racing.
From there, the three-time T J Smith Stakes winner could yet be given the task of leading out the field for the $13million The Everest at Randwick on October 13 before he goes out of training and begins life as a normal, if not remarkably quirky former racehorse.
Source: This article first appeared on the Racing.com website and is reproduced here with their kind permission. For more on Off the Track visit https://www.racing.com/news
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