A four-hour traffic delay wasn’t enough to stop Alligator Blood on Saturday as David Vandyke’s prized three-year-old won the $2 million Magic Million 3YO Guineas (1400m) in style.
Alligator Blood overcame plenty of pre-race drama to win the 2020 Magic Millions 3YO Guineas on the Gold Coast. Photo: Steve Hart.
An accident on the motorway left some doubt as to whether the $1.80 favourite would even make it to the track on time, but the stewards’ decision to push the race time back 45 minutes meant punters were able to cheer the hometown hero on.
After running second in last year’s Caulfield Guineas (1600m) behind Super Seth, Alligator Blood began well from gate 7 with jockey Ryan Maloney on board. The pair jumped third from the gates and found the perfect position out wide to kick home strongly down the straight.
Despite the holdup getting to the track, Alligator Blood didn’t shift at all in the market prior to the race. Vandyke went on to say that he was a little worried about how the trip might affect his horse, but he never had any doubts about running him.
“That trip knocked him around a bit. He was a bit tucked up in the yard and I thought he wasn’t looking his best, but these good horses they just jump the hurdles and… wow, the Queensland did it in style,” he said.
“He was going to run. He wanted to run. I wasn’t happy with him, but I wanted to give him the opportunity to do what he does best and go out and compete. He’s just a deadest competitor and he’s done his owners proud.”
Maloney played the hero with a gun ride that saw Alligator Blood cross the line for his eighth win in nine career starts.
The gelding by All Too Hard won the Group 3 Magic Millions Vo Rogue Plate (1400m) at Eagle Farm by two lengths back in December and recorded a similar margin of victory ahead of second placegetter Eleven Eleven on Saturday.
“He just rode him a treat, he had him right where he should have. Gave him plenty of room in the straight and the horse did the rest,” Vandyke said of Maloney’s ride.
Eleven Eleven put up a fight at the 100m mark before Alligator Blood switched into gear to win by 2 lengths.
After narrowly missing out at Caulfield last year, Vandyke said this was the highlight of his training career.
“We got beat in the Guineas and to see him carry away and win a big $2 million like that, it’s a big relief,” he said.
“Considering everything, it’d have to be the highlight of my career.”
2020 Magic Millions 3YO Guineas Results & Finishing Order
| Place | # | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Barrier | Weight | SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | ALLIGATOR BLOOD | David Vandyke | Ryan Maloney | – | 7 | 57kg | $1.80F |
| 2 | 9 | ELEVEN ELEVEN | Gregory Hickman | Keagan Latham | 2L | 15 | 56kg | $31 |
| 3 | 5 | EXHILARATES | James Cummings | Kerrin McEvoy | 3.3L | 4 | 56kg | $12 |
| 4 | 3 | HIGHTAIL | Peter & Paul Snowden | Hugh Bowman | 3.8L | 1 | 56.5kg | $13 |
| 5 | 7 | KING OF HASTINGS | Anthony Freedman | Damien Oliver | 4.8L | 3 | 56kg | $21 |
| 6 | 12 | SCOUT | Toby & Trent Edmonds | Tim Clark | 5L | 10 | 56kg | $101 |
| 7 | 8 | PROFIT | Chris Anderson | Glen Boss | 5.1L | 9 | 56kg | $20 |
| 8 | 4 | DIAMOND THUNDER | Mark Newnham | Joshua Parr | 5.2L | 14 | 56.5kg | $19 |
| 9 | 15 | IT’S KIND OF MAGIC | Brent Stanley | Brett Prebble | 6.4L | 2 | 54kg | $10 |
| 10 | 1 | DUBIOUS | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | James McDonald | 6.6L | 6 | 58kg | $21 |
| 11 | 14 | OH FIVE GLORY | Peter & Will Hulbert | Larry Cassidy | 7.6L | 12 | 54kg | $201 |
| 12 | 17e | LET IT POUR | Bjorn Baker | Jason Collett | 7.7L | 11 | 54kg | $71 |
| 13 | 13 | THE EXECUTIONER | Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young | Luke Currie | 8.1L | 8 | 56kg | $201 |
| 14 | 16 | HOWWONDERFULLIFEIS | Tony Gollan | Baylee Nothdurft (a) | 13.1L | 5 | 54kg | $201 |
| 15 | 11 | STAR SURPRISE | Michael Moroney | Damian Lane | 17.4L | 13 | 56kg | $31 |
| SB | 10 | LEVIATHAN | Peter & Paul Snowden | Tommy Berry | – | 0 | 56kg | – |
| – | 20e | BADOOSH | Matthew Dunn | – | – | 0 | – | – |
| – | 21e | BELLS APPROACHING | Matthew Dunn | – | – | 0 | – | – |
| – | 19e | DESIGNATED | Kristen Buchanan | – | – | 0 | – | – |
| – | 6 | SUPERIUM | Joseph Pride | Nash Rawiller | – | 0 | – | – |
| – | 18e | GALA MISS | Kelly Schweida | – | – | 0 | – | – |
