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EMERGING local star Drunken Joker gave the parochial
NCF Doomben crowd plenty to cheer about on Saturday
when he overcame a horror draw to win the G3 Lyndhurst
Stud Doomben Classic.
Superbly ridden from barrier 15 by Justin Stanley,
Drunken Joker (G3 Hula Chief-Intoxicate) crossed
the field to take an early lead before taking a sit
on Sandy River, which drew the outside.
In the straight, Sandy River and Drunken Joker raced
clear with Stanley driving Drunken Joker to a length
win. Listen Pal did his best work late to finish
third.
Stanley had only the one mount on Saturday but trainer
Paul Wallace and owners, Ardie and Carina Cliffe,
regard him as part of the Drunken Joker family. He
has now ridden the gelding six times for three wins
and two seconds.
Mr and Mrs Cliffe purchased Intoxicate, the dam
of Drunken Joker, as the winner of a Canberra Maiden
for $4,000 after reading an advertisement in The
Land newspaper. The mare won at Gatton and Toowoomba
before being retired to stud.
After losing twins at her first mating with Monongahela,
the sire of the Cliffe’s previous best horse
Mono Joker, they spent $2,000 and sent Intoxicate
to Doncaster winner Hula Chief, with the resultant
foal being Drunken Joker.
The Doomben Classic win took Drunken Joker’s
record to five wins and five seconds from 12 starts
for stakes of $252,650, including QTIS bonuses of
$101,000.
While Drunken Joker has already provided the Cliffe’s
with a great return on their $6,000 investment, they
have fielded some very good overseas offers for the
gelding.
“We had an offer of $200,000 from Singapore
a few starts back but knocked it back straight away
and then last week we had two separate offers of
$500,000 from Hong Kong and the United States.
“If he was worth that before Saturday’s
win, he has to be worth a lot more now,” Mr
Cliffe said. “Maybe if the two offers were
combined we would have to consider it, as that would
help set up my wife and family for life.”
The win was also a triumph for part-time Toowoomba
trainer Paul Wallace, who has been training for just
over two years, as well as working as a tractor salesman.
Saturday’s G3 win was only the third metropolitan
win for Wallace, with Drunken Joker having also given
him the other two, including a win at Eagle Farm
on February 21, which was the first time that Wallace
had started a horse at a metropolitan meeting.
Drunken Joker has been given a couple of days off
at his owner’s property while offers to buy
him and a future carnival program are considered
“There is a 1400m QTIS race at Eagle Farm
on Brisbane Cup day but he might get a bit too much
weight in that now,” Mr Cliffe said.
“If he hasn’t been sold we would definitely
look at the Sunshine Coast Guineas on July 3, which
is a set weights race.”
QUEENSLAND Racing carnival news: Ray See – May
24.
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Drunken Joker races away
to beat Sandy River in
Saturday’s Doomben
Classic. |
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Justin Stanley returns on Drunken Joker after winning
the Doomben Classic. |
(Noel Pascoe photos)
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