The picket fence continued for Jigsaw at Caulfield on Saturday with Cindy Alderson‘s flying sprint star posting his sixth win on the trot up in grade to claim the Ladbrokes William Reid Stakes 2026 in Melbourne.

The ultra-consistent Manhattan Rain gelding may be a rising eight-year-old, but he sprinted like a horse half his age going to another level again in the Group 1 $1 million William Reid Stakes (1200m) to continue the unbelievable journey for his Cranbourne-based trainer Alderson.

“It’s getting more and more unbelievable as we go along,” she told Racing.com.

“I keep thinking it’s going to stop sooner or later. He’s not giving me any indications it’s going to stop.

“He’s just run exactly the same time as he ran last week, so he answered the back-up.

“It’s amazing for a small stable like ours to have the opportunity to have a horse like this at this stage of my career.”

Improving out of sight on his 10th in the same race at The Valley back in 2023, Jigsaw is now a dual Group 1 champion having gone across the Tasman at the start of the year to win New Zealand’s Group 1 Railway Stakes.

He has now added a homegrown Group 1 to his impressive CV going back-to-back at the Caulfield track following his 3.5 length lead-up win over the same course and distance on May 14 in the VOBIS Gold Sprint.

“We were a little worried about the eight Group 1 winners, but we were never too concerned about him drawing a wide gate, especially with the start being in a straight line,” Alderson added.

“He was able to control the race. He got an absolute flyer of a start and I thought Tropicus would go up and take us on, but they didn’t.

“Charm Stone gave him a run on the corner, but he just kept fighting all the way to the line.

“Incredibly proud of the horse and incredibly proud of Logan and my whole team.”

Relishing a drop in weight from 61kg to 58.5kg at WFA, Jigsaw ($5.50) was given another peach of a ride by his regular hoop, apprentice Logan Bates, who Alderson was quick to praise.

“I think it starts a fairytale of what’s going to be an amazing career for someone who is so talented and shown himself to be able to handle pressure,” she said of the young jockey.

“There was a lot of pressure out there today which we spoke about before the race.

“He just executes it so beautifully.

“He’s got so much confidence in the horse and he gives the horse every opportunity to run to his best.

“I think they’re a fantastic team.”

Bates overcame a wide gate 11 draw taking Jigsaw to the front early and the horse was good enough to lead from barrier to box, holding on in a gutsy performance to deny Chris Waller‘s last start Newmarket Handicap third placegetter Angel Capital ($8.50) by a half-length on the line with Team Hawkes‘ 80/1 priced three-year-old Devil Night running out of his skin to complete the trifecta in third.

“I say it time and time again, he’s a ripper,” an ecstatic Bates said after securing his first Group 1 down under.

“What a horse, just to come back from pretty much nowhere and, this preparation, I mean, you look at him now, he’s just the ultimate professional.

“He relaxed beautifully, he was on the ball, and it was the query, backing him up, he’s never ever done it and he’s normally a horse better kept fresh, a month in between runs, and it’s just a credit to Cindy and her team.

“They do a fantastic job.

“It’s just unbelievable to get my maiden Group 1 in Australia.

“I was able to get my first one in New Zealand and to come back…this whole prep for this horse to win two Group 1s in the prep is just unbelievable.

“I’m going to remember it for a while.

“When you’ve got horses like Jimmysstar and Angel Capital coming at you, and the likes of other too, you’re always going to be a little bit worried, but I was just rapt for the horse and rapt to Cindy, and Marcus Price also.

“It means everything. It’s quite unbelievable. I thought about it during the week and this horse has just left me speechless today.

“Just to the fact of going back and looking at his whole preparation and just watching him grow. It’s so special.”

While Jigsaw may be enjoying a purple patch of career best form, Alderson said he was likely paddock bound now ahead of a spring return.

“I don’t know what to do,” she admitted.

“I keep taking it one day at a time. I’ve never backed him up, so that could be the end of the preparation as he’s been in work for a long time.

“He’ll tell me. I know him that well now.

“He won’t do much for the following week and then he’ll let us know.

“Looking at him out there, he’s never looked better in his life.”

Should Alderson opt to race on with her stable ace, one option would be a trip north to Sydney for the Group 1 $3 million TJ Smith Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on April 4.

Jigsaw has been crunched in from $101 to $17 in futures all-in TJ Smith Stakes betting at Ladbrokes.com.au with the bookies opting to keep him safe.

Undefeated queen Black Caviar (2013) was the last winner of the William Reid Stakes – TJ Smith Stakes double.

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