Gaulois claims his first Group win in with brilliant Eagle Farm performance

A brave horse and a bold ride proved a perfect combination when Gaulois took out the G3 Eagle Farm Mile at the Brisbane track on Saturday, 13 June.

After jumping fast from an outside gate, Gaulois had sailed away to a long lead by the halfway mark of the 1,600m race and still had a couple of lengths advantage with 200m to run.

The inevitable pressure came over the final 100m, where Niccanova, Military Zone and Gaulois’ stablemate Best Of Days were all closing fast, but Gaulois fought them off and under a powerful ride from Brad Stewart, he added a G3 win to a pair of previous Listed successes, scoring by a nose.

Niccanova held on to second place just ahead of Military Zone with Best Of Days only a head behind the winner in fourth place.  

The victory was his eighth from 35 starts, which also include 16 placings.

For trainer James Cummings the win capped a Brisbane winter carnival frustrated by COVID-19 restrictions and also provided a welcome reward for his team.

“That’s another well-deserved result for a travelling team who have made many sacrifices being quarantined in Queensland and who will again have to isolate when they return home,” Cummings said.

While the team hadn’t necessarily anticipated seeing Gaulois rolling along with a long lead, the result came as no surprise.

"When he was so far in front I thought he would have to be tough to win, and he was," said travelling foreman Nacim Dilmi.

“It was an enormous run. He’ll be a different horse again in the spring.”

The five-year-old Gaulois has the distinction of being a member of the last Australian crop of Darley’s outstanding but ill-fated stallion Street Cry whose local offspring includes the world champion mare Winx.