Collingwood champion Nathan Buckley’s racehorse Hurricane Jett, co-owned by star Clyde trainer Jayne Davies, won the Group 1 New South Wales Sires Stakes at Menangle on Sunday. By Stuart Teather
WHAT does the Collingwood Football Club and harness racing have in common? The answer is Nathan Buckley.
The former Magpies superstar co-owns promising two-year-old Hurricane Jett, along with Clyde-based trainer Jayne Davis.
Hurricane Jett, named after Buckley’s young son Jett, has done something Buckley’s Magpies never managed to do – win the big events.
Racing at Menangle in the New South Wales Sire Stakes Final on Sunday, Hurricane Jett overcame a horror barrier draw to win the $100,000 Group One race.
Hurricane Jett settled last in the race and driver Chris Alford held him there until near the home straight, where he took Jett out wide to claim a solid win.
The win pushes Hurricane Jett’s total prize money over $100,000 and the future looks bright.
He has now claimed five wins from seven starts and only just missed the Bathurst Gold Crown, where Emjayem Grand edged him out.
Co-owner and trainer Jayne Davies said she was ‘over the moon’ with the result and planned to run Jett in a number of races over the coming weeks.
Davies said she would run Jett in the upcoming New South Wales Breeders Challenge heats on Tuesday, a week later run him in the Australasian Breeders Crown and just five days later again in the Breeders Challenge final, all at Menangle.
“He’s a very, very fit little horse and I don’t have to do anything in between races with him,” she said. “Yes it’s three runs close together, but he’s a very fit horse.”
Davies said Jett would remain in Sydney for the duration of the races, rather than make the trip back to Clyde.
“This week he’s having a couple of days off – I’ll take him for a light gallop later in the week,” she said.
Davies said she had not seen which horses were contesting the Breeders Challenge, but expected it to be a similar field to the Sire Stakes.
As for the Collingwood link to the horse, Davies confessed herself to be a diehard Magpies fan.
Speaking of Buckley, Davies said: “I just reckon he’s the greatest thing we’ve ever had at Collingwood – The first time (Hurricane Jett) ever won a race, he carried number five.”
Picture: Stewart Chambers.
