Kukeracha ended an early 2021 campaign with a win in the Group 1 Queensland Derby at Eagle Farm Racecourse in Brisbane, Australia, on May 29, a first stakes win and a career milestone by any measure.

For his first start in the second half of the year, the New Zealand-bred Kukeracha will be favored to win Thursday’s Rowley Mile at Hawkesbury Racecourse, if he can beat stablemate Order Again.

Both are trained by Chris Waller, who has entered three of the 15 runners in the field, including the outsider Tory Joy.

Last November, Dream Runner was pulled up in the final furlong of a sprint handicap at Hawkesbury Racecourse in Australia when the gelding was found to have bled.

The incident marked the end of an otherwise successful 2020 campaign of three wins in his first four starts. Dream Runner returned to racing in June and won in his fourth race of the season in a handicap at 1 1/8 miles at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney on Aug. 7.

Mishriff and Love are the heavyweights in the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes on Wednesday at York Racecourse in England, but there is more to this important 1 1/4-mile fixture than just those two horses.

Tara Jasmine, a 4-year-old filly, has been placed in an ideal spot for her first start in four months at Grafton Racecourse in Australia on Monday.

After racing against tougher rivals in March and April, Tara Jasmine is a standout in a handicap at about six furlongs, the second race on an eight-race program that begins at 10:25 p.m. Eastern, or 7:25 p.m. Pacific. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.

From the Bush may have a name reflective of the Australian countryside, but the gelding is doing just fine in high-profile races in recent starts.

From the Bush won a lucrative handicap at seven furlongs at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney on July 10 and followed with a win in his first start at a mile in the Forbes Cup at Forbes Racecourse on Aug. 1.

Unbeaten in three leading mile races in England this year, Palace Pier will race in France for the first time since last summer in Sunday’s Group 1 Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville Racecourse, a race with major international implications for the fall.

The winner receives a fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Mile on Nov. 6 at Del Mar, although the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on Oct. 16 at Ascot is another lure for top-class milers.

The nose that separated Sansom and Streets of Avalon in the Grade 3 Bletchingly Stakes at Caulfield Racecourse in Australia on July 24 showed that the two geldings had responded well to multi-month layoffs.

The rematch is set for Saturday’s Group 2 P.B. Lawrence Stakes, which is run at seven furlongs at Bletchingly. This time the advantage may be with Streets of Avalon, who has won 6 of 22 starts at seven furlongs in a career that includes 10 wins in 57 starts.

With a Group 3 win in April and a second in the Group 1 French Oaks on June 20, Philomene is well established among France’s 3-year-old filly division.

Where she ranks among all 3-year-olds in the country will be better known after Saturday’s Group2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornaro at 1 1/4 miles at Deauville Racecourse.

The $469,240 Prix Guillaume d’Ornaro drew a field of eight and is the top race for 3-year-olds at the popular seaside summer meeting at Deauville.

Fine Weather appeared in a route race for the first time when he beat maidens at about 1 1/4 miles at Cranbourne Racecourse on July 22 in Australia.

Making his fifth start, Fine Weather closed from eighth in a field of 14 to win by 2 1/4 lengths as the 7-5 favorite. The win has led to an entry in a handicap at an even longer 1 3/8 miles at Geelong Racecourse near Melbourne on Friday.

A six-month break from November to May has changed the New Zealand-bred gelding McNair, who may start favored in a competitive one-mile handicap at Scone Racecourse in Australia on Thursday.