Australia: Storm Boy brings lofty expectations into stakes debut

The fashionably-bred colt Storm Boy will have his stakes debut in the Group 3 Magic Millions B.J. McLachlan Stakes for Southern Hemisphere 2-year-olds at Eagle Farm Racecourse in Brisbane, Australia, on Friday evening.

Expectations are high that Storm Boy is the sort of Southern Hemisphere 2-year-old that could appear in major stakes in coming months, notably the Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes, the richest race for juveniles in the world on March 23 at Rosehill Gardens in Sydney. The Golden Slipper will have a purse of approximately $3.36 million in 2024.

Storm Boy was 16-1 in the future book for the Golden Slipper earlier this week.

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By the American Triple Crown winner Justify, Storm Boy won his debut in a maiden race at 5 1/2 furlongs at Rosehill Gardens on Dec. 2 as the 4-5 favorite, leading throughout. He beat four rivals by 2 1/4 lengths.

The $202,100 McLachlan Stakes is run at six furlongs and drew only six runners. Storm Boy, trained by the powerful stable of Adrian Bott and Gai Waterhouse, will be an odds-on favorite, and is expected to be prominent from the break under jockey Adam Hyeronimus. The rider is closely allied with the Bott-Waterhouse stable.

The McLachlan field includes three other winners, including two-time winners Astapor and Mishani Aloha.

Astapor, who is undefeated, won a maiden race at Rockhampton on Nov. 10, and an allowance race at 5 1/2 furlongs at Doomben on Nov. 25. In both wins, he stalked the pace and was well clear of rivals at the finish.

Mishani Aloha, one of two fillies in the McLachlan field, was fourth in her debut in a handicap against winners at Eagle Farm in October and won her next two starts in six-furlong handicaps at Doomben on Nov. 10 and Dec. 2.

She set the pace in those wins, but could face another level of pressure from Storm Boy, who is quick enough to lead and was clocked in 33.99 seconds for the final three furlongs of his debut win.

Eagle Farm has a 10-race program beginning at 9:13 p.m. Eastern or 6:13 p.m. Pacific. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

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