Tulloch Lodge continues to roll out the two-year-olds with Rosehill winner Fully Lit their eighth individual victor this season, his triumph coming just a week after barn mate and nominal Golden Slipper favourite Storm Boy raced away with the Magic Millions Classic.
Off the back of a stable record 37 juvenile winners last season, Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott are making every post a winner this term.
In Fully Lit, they look to have another leading contender for next month’s $2 million Inglis Millennium (1100m) at Randwick, the colt firming into $8 behind stablemate and $4.50 equal betting sites favourite Sovereign Hill.
A $60,000 Classic Sale buy, Fully Lit ($5.50) followed the usual stable formula of setting the pace and kicked strongly in the straight to cruise to a 2-3/4 length win over King Of Roseau ($4.40) with Godolphin first starter Tartaglia ($12) another half-length away third.
With so much two-year-old strikepower at their disposal, the most difficult job for Waterhouse and Bott might well be keeping their juveniles apart.
“He has shown potential in his trials, we knew he had been well educated and had fitness on his side. It was good to see that ability stack up today,” Bott said.
“He has been produced a little later (in the season), so obviously he needs to take those next steps.
“But he is on his way. He is a nice colt with Improvement.
“We might head towards the Millennium.”
Waterhouse and Bott have been almost unbeatable with their two-year-olds this season, producing the trifecta in the Breeders’ Plate, winning the Golden Gift with Shangri La Express and the B J McLachlan Stakes and Magic Millions with Storm Boy.
Waterhouse had similar depth in 2001 when Ha Ha downed stablemates Excellerator and Red Hannigan to give her the Golden Slipper trifecta.
But since teaming with Bott, the 2022-23 term is the measuring stick and something the trainers are keen to build on.
“Last year was certainly our best year in terms of the two-year-olds and in terms of the consistency and the numbers of runners and winners produced,” Bott said.
“This year we’ve been able to carry that form through, which is satisfying.
“But also, each year you hope to be able to improve that quality. Not just the number of winners but winning the right races.”
Waterhouse and Bott are certainly doing that.
Last season, their 37 juvenile wins included seven at black-type level for total prizemoney of just over $3.4 million.
Halfway through this racing term, and with the bulk of the major two-year-old features still to come, they have won 11 races, three of them black-type, to amass more than $3.6 million in stakes.