Australia: Moira to get rest with intended return to racing in August

SYDNEY – Moira, the Eclipse Award winner as the champion turf female of 2024, has been turned out after finishing 14th in her Australian debut in the Group 1 Doncaster Mile at Royal Randwick Racecourse on April 5, trainer Chris Waller said last weekend.

“She just needs time to adapt,” Waller said. “She’ll be better when she’s gotten into our seasons.”

On Wednesday, between races at Warwick Farm Racecourse, Waller said Moira will be rested at a local farm for an expected return to racing in August. There are numerous lucrative stakes in the second half of the year that could include Moira, a winner of 7 of 18 starts.

Moira was beaten 4 1/4 lengths in the $2.51 million Doncaster Mile, which had a field of 20 and is rated as one of Australia’s toughest annual races at the distance.

:: Get free past performances, analysis, and picks for Australian racing

An Ontario-bred best known for winning the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Del Mar last November, Moira will have good company on Waller’s bench in coming months.

The group includes Via Sistina, who has won seven Group 1 races since August; Fangirl, the winner of the Group 1 Queen of the Turf Stakes at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney last weekend; Autumn Glow, the highly-rated undefeated winner of four starts; and Anisette, a three-time Grade 1 winner in California in the last two years.

Anisette finished last of 20 in the Doncaster Mile in her Australian debut.

Anisette and Moira race for Yulong Investments, and were purchased for $1.8 million and $4.3 million at auctions in Kentucky last November.

Via Sistina won the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick last weekend to equal a record for most Group 1 wins in a season set by the four-time Horse of the Year Winx in 2018-2019.

Via Sistina has clinched the Horse of the Year title for the current season.

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.