Racing officials should have thrown the chequebook at Jamie Kah this week to ensure she was riding in Melbourne on Caulfield Cup day.
Instead, Kah is snubbing the 2400-metre group 1 handicap and heading to Sydney for The Everest.
Jamie Kah will bypass the Caulfield Cup meeting to ride in Sydney this weekend.Credit: Getty Images
Not that anyone could blame Kah. She is a live chance to win the $20 million glamour sprint on three-year-old colt Traffic Warden and land a bumper pay day.
But it shows just how much The Everest continues to disrupt racing in Victoria. Make no mistake, it’s a body blow for Victoria to lose the No.1 attraction to the Sydney stage at a time the state is desperate to engage a younger audience and bring more women to the track.
Sadly for Melbourne racegoers, she is not the only top jock headed north. Craig Williams, Mark Zahra and Luke Nolen all have rides in The Everest.
In future Victorian officials should consider implementing an ambassador role or jockey incentive scheme to keep their best riders in Melbourne for the spring.
The Everest will be Kah’s first race meeting back following a three-week suspension.
At least she will be at Flemington for the Melbourne Cup after agreeing to ride the Lloyd Williams-owned Point King on the first Tuesday in November.
One jockey who could not get back to Sydney fast enough on Saturday was James McDonald. Usually, the best in the business, J-Mac had a stinker at Caulfield, and didn’t the punters feel it.
When Broadsiding failed to make it first past the post in the Caulfield Guineas, a stack of multi-bets simultaneously went up in flames.
James McDonald rides Broadsiding to the barrier start before its unplaced finish in the Caulfield Guineas on Saturday.Credit: Getty Images
McDonald flew into town needing just one group 1 win to take his tally to an unprecedented 100 for his career – at 32, no jockey in Australian........