Magnificent Mr Brightside heads Kiwi clean sweep in Makybe Diva

Kiwi-breds have a proud recent record in the Gr. 1 Makybe Diva Stakes, and that trend continued on Saturday with New Zealand laying claim to all of the first four finishers in a memorable renewal of the A$750,000 Flemington feature.
The extraordinary Mr Brightside came out on top yet again, earning a slice of history as the first back-to-back winner of the race since it was renamed in triple Melbourne Cup winner Makybe Diva’s honour in 2007. Under its previous name, the Craiglee Stakes, the only horses to win the race twice in a row were Chiquita (1950-51) and Sailor’s Guide (1956-67).
Mr Brightside’s Makybe Diva Stakes title defence was the seventh win at Group One level for the Bullbars gelding, and his 17th victory overall from a 36-race career. He has now banked more than A$14 million, dwarfing the $22,000 that renowned bloodstock agent Phill Cataldo signed for him as a yearling at Karaka in 2019.
Saturday’s Makybe Diva Stakes warrants a prominent place in any highlight reel of Mr Brightside’s glittering career. He appeared to have a steep mountain to climb as he rounded the home turn half a dozen lengths adrift of Pride Of Jenni, who produced such unforgettable and unstoppable front-running deeds in the Gr. 1 Empire Rose Stakes, Champions Mile and Queen Elizabeth Stakes last season.
Pride Of Jenni never looked like slowing down on Saturday, but Mr Brightside set his sights on her and gradually wore her down through a thrilling final 300 metres. Under a perfect Craig Williams ride, he finally got the better of her within the final few strides of their epic duel, grabbing victory by a long neck.
Pride Of Jenni herself was born in Australia but bred by Trelawney Stud from one of their enduring families. Saturday’s first four was completed by the Redwood gelding Antino and War Decree’s last-start Queensland Derby hero Warmonger.
Mr Brightside is trained by brothers Ben, Will and JD Hayes at Lindsay Park. The stable’s general manager Gareth Downey – a proud New Zealander and former manager at Valachi Downs – had many reasons to celebrate Saturday’s result.
“It couldn’t have been much better from a New Zealand point of view, being able to lay claim to all of the first four finishers,” Downey told RaceForm on Tuesday. “With the Valachi Downs connection, I was thrilled to see Warmonger run such a slashing race as he gets underway in a Caulfield Cup campaign.
“But Mr Brightside is just a phenomenal horse. He’s been that over a number of seasons now, and he continues to be. Ben, Will and JD Hayes say it after almost every race – it’s hard to put into words how much he’s done for them since they took over this iteration of Lindsay Park. He’s just an enormously talented horse with an incredible will to win.
“And that race on Saturday was a joy to watch. I had lunch with Pride Of Jenni’s owner Tony Ottobre yesterday, and we agreed that we got exactly what we wanted to see. Two superstar horses fought a wonderful battle down that Flemington straight. It was a real spectacle for racing, and we were just fortunate to come out on the winning side on this occasion.”
Mr Brightside and Pride Of Jenni are forming a fierce rivalry. They have now met eight times since last November and have filled the quinella on four of those occasions, with the winning score now two apiece.
Saturday’s Makybe Diva first four headlined a highly successful afternoon for Kiwis across the ditch. Shamexpress mare Grinzinger Belle was a commanding front-running winner of the Gr. 2 Let’s Elope Stakes, while the Mark Walker-trained Bellatrix Star – who won the Gr. 2 Eclipse Stakes at Pukekohe in January for syndicators Fortuna Racing – collected her first piece of Australian black type with a potent finishing burst in the Listed Cap D’Antibes Stakes.
Meanwhile in Sydney, Unusual Legacy staked his claim for a shot at next month’s Gr. 1 Metropolitan Handicap with a powerful come-from-behind performance at Rosehill. The son of Letham Stud stallion Unusual Suspect has now won five of his eight starts.
Last season’s Gr. 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas sixth placegetter Firestorm made a perfect start to her four-year-old season with a big finish to win first-up in Benchmark 78 grade. Trained by Paul Mirabelli prior to her sale to clients of the Chris Waller stable, Firestorm is a daughter of Rich Hill Stud stallion Satono Aladdin.
She narrowly defeated her stablemate and fellow Kiwi-bred four-year-old Chica Mojito. That daughter of Zacinto placed in the Gr. 3 Eulogy Stakes last season and in a timely segue, is part-owned by her breeders – Gareth Downey and his wife Mel Gamble.
“We were really happy to see her performance as well as the Satono Aladdin mare that beat her,” Downey said. “They raced against each other in New Zealand as three-year-olds, and now they’re performing in Australia. You never know how a mare is going to fare when they turn four and come up against older horses, but we were delighted.”
Downey also has ongoing interests on home soil, including The Odyssey, a homebred son of his Gr. 1 Thorndon Mile winner Macavelli Miss.
Trained by Ben and Ryan Foote, The Odyssey won four of his seven starts last season including the inaugural $350,000 The Oaks Stud Remutaka Classic at Trentham in January. He has made a promising start to his five-year-old season with a fourth over 1400 metres at Ruakaka and a last-start third behind Wolfgang and Nereus in a 1600-metre open handicap on the first day of the Hawke’s Bay Spring Carnival.
“We’ve been very happy with his first couple of runs,” Downey said. “We were hoping he might still be sharp enough to be a winning chance over 1600 metres, but now that he’s in open grade, it seems that getting out to 2000 metres will really be the key. But Ben Foote and Courtney Barnes have been extremely happy with how he’s come up, so we’re looking forward to seeing what the season holds.”