The 2024 King Charles III Stakes at Royal Randwick delivered a thrilling finish, with Joe Pride‘s untapped four-year-old star Ceolwulf emerging victorious to cap off a dramatic The Everest Day that saw both highs and lows for the trainer.
2024 King Charles III Stakes winner Ceolwulf was excellent again off his Epsom win at the track and trip. Photo: Steve Hart.
Earlier on the day there was a tense moment as Pride’s former The Everest champion, Think About It, suffered a bleeding attack and crashed to the ground during the Group 3 Sydney Stakes. Miraculously, the horse was able to get up and walk away, avoiding serious injury.
Recovering from the initial shock, Pride turned his attention to his Kiwi-bred son of Tavistock, Ceolwulf, who was poised to make a statement in the official second edition of the Group 1 $5 million King Charles III Stakes (1600m). The gelding, ridden by in-form hoop Chad Schofield, delivered a powerful performance, making up late ground and to run down determined front-runner Pride Of Jenni who was forced into second as the beaten favourite for the day’s The Everest winning trainer Ciaron Maher.
Ceolwulf’s win marked a significant achievement for Pride, securing another Group 1 victory over the Randwick mile. The trainer praised the horse’s exceptional talent and the hard work of his team.
“An absolute rollercoaster today. As if last year the same day wasn’t enough. You get a little bit numb as a trainer because if you felt every up and down, it’d send you around the bend,” Pride told Sky Thoroughbred Central.
“But just really grateful to come across a horse like this. The world’s his oyster.
“It’s great, you know. Racing has been dominated by some big stables of late.
“For our stable to compete, a medium-sized stable of less than 50 horses. to compete on the big stage here.
“Very proud, big team behind the effort here. It was an amazing event.”
The race featured several other exciting storylines. Pride Of Jenni, the beaten top elect, battled valiantly when fighting back late but ultimately fell short.
The Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald-trained My Oberon, a longshot at $26, finished third again having also rounded out the King Charles III Stakes trifecta behind Fangirl in 2023.
Chris Waller‘s defending champion Fangirl encountered a tough run, finishing sixth.
With his King Charles III Stakes victory, Ceolwulf has solidified his position as a top-class horse. Pride hinted at potential targets for the remainder of the spring carnival, including the Group 1 Champions Stakes (2000m) at Flemington on the final day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
2024 King Charles III Stakes Results
| Finish | No. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Bar. | Weight | Penalty | Starting Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | CEOLWULF (NZ) | Joseph Pride | Chad Schofield | 2 | 58.5kg | $6.50 | |||
| 2 | 9 | PRIDE OF JENNI | Ciaron Maher | Declan Bates | 0.72L | 10 | 57kg | $2.70F | ||
| 3 | 2 | MY OBERON (IRE) | Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald | Nash Rawiller | 1.01L | 7 | 59kg | $26 | ||
| 4 | 8 | TOM KITTEN | James Cummings | Ms Jamie Kah | 3.4L | 11 | 58.5kg | $21 | ||
| 5 | 12 | AMELIA’S JEWEL | Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald | Tommy Berry | 3.66L | 8 | 57kg | $17 | ||
| 6 | 10 | FANGIRL | Chris Waller | James McDonald | 3.9L | 3 | 57kg | $2.90 | ||
| 7 | 7 | CELESTIAL LEGEND | Les Bridge | Blake Shinn | 4.25L | 1 | 58.5kg | $10 | ||
| 8 | 5 | NEW ENERGY (IRE) | Ciaron Maher | Jason Collett | 5.01L | 6 | 59kg | $101 | ||
| 9 | 1 | PERICLES | James Cummings | Zac Lloyd (a) | 5.42L | 4 | 59kg | $31 | ||
| 10 | 4 | MAJOR BEEL (NZ) | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Adam Hyeronimus | 7.62L | 9 | 59kg | $101 | ||
| 11 | 3 | LION’S ROAR (NZ) | John O’Shea & Tom Charlton | Mark Zahra | 8.91L | 5 | 59kg | $101 | ||
Table Credit: Racing Australia.
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