2025 Australian Turf Club Owners Awards

The 2025 Australian Turf Club Owners Awards recognised outstanding results and achievements across the 2024/2025 racing season with eight awards given.

MOST STARTS AT ATC COURSES PRESENTED BY KIA ORA

CASUAL CONNECTION 

The John Sargent trained 6YO Gelding had 15 starts on ATC Courses and achieved 3 victories. He won a Benchmark 78 handicap at Royal Randwick by 3 lengths on 24 May 2025 after being successful at a Warwick Farm midweek in April and a Rosehill Gardens Midway Handicap in November 2024.

LEADING INDIVIDUAL OWNERS BY WINS PRESENTED BY COOLMORE

FRANCIS AND CHRISTINE COOK

The Cooks achieved 30 victories on ATC Courses – headlined by the John O’Shea and Tom Charlton trained LINEBACKER who was the Group 1 The Agency Randwick Guineas winner. Other ATC feature race winners over the season included ATHABASCAN, ELIYASS, OSIPENKO and RIVELLINO.

MOST IMPROVED HORSE PRESENTED BY YULONG

ALALCANCE 

The Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott trained import arrived after a maiden win at Curragh over 2414m at his fourth start. Commencing the season with a NSW Benchmark Rating of 70, ALALCANCE won 4 races and two seconds to increase his benchmark to 111 – a staggering 41-point increase. ALALCANCE had dominant victories in the Group 2 Schweppes Chairmans Quality and Group 3 Asahi Super Dry N E Manion Cup in the Autumn.

MOST WINS PRESENTED BY ARROWFIELD

LADY SHENANDOAH

The Chris Waller superstar mare went through the 2024-25 season with 5 starts, all of them on ATC courses, and winning all of them. Three of the races were at the highest level – the Group 1 Coolmore Classic, the Group 1 The Chase Surround Stakes and the Group 1 Darley Flight Stakes. Up to a dozen horses had won four races on ATC Courses over the season, but LADY SHENANDOAH was the only horse to achieve five.

SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT PRESENTED BY DARLEY

MYRACEHORSE

In recognition of their commitment to introducing hundreds of new owners to the racing industry and to Australian Turf Club racecourses.

Throughout the 2024/25 season, MyRacehorse had 10 horses race at ATC Tracks for a total of 37 starts and 7 wins. We welcomed over 1,000 MyRacehorse Owners and Guests to racedays. A standout moment came on Championships Day 1, with nearly 500 owners on course to support WILLYDOIT in the prestigious ATC Australian Derby.

This season also marked major milestones, including their 100th career winner, a win in the Breeders Plate and a memorable quinella at Royal Randwick on 24 May 2025 with Glory Daze and Bear On The Loose.

As they round out the season with Nana’s Wish in Race 6 today, we congratulate MyRacehorse on a remarkable year of success and innovation in ownership engagement.

It was a seamless transition from platform to Light Rail for the Red team, while the Blue Team settled into stride on the bus but it was the Black team out the back as they struck some traffic.

LEADING SYNDICATOR (BY WINS) PRESENTED BY INGLIS

DARBY RACING

Darby Racing have been successful on 30 occasions during the 2024-25 season. Headlining Darby is superstar sprinter OVERPASS who during the season took his earnings over $10million. OVERPASS led all the way to comfortably win the Group 3 Sydney Stakes; in faster time than The TAB Everest on the day; and was narrowly beaten in the Group 1 Asahi Super Dry T J Smith Stakes. Other ATC feature race winners over the season included ROBUSTO, IOWNA MERC and OUR ANCHORAGE.

MOSTING WINNING SIRE PRESENTED BY RACING & SPORTS

SNITZEL

Arrowfield’s Sire SNITZEL sired 42 winners on ATC Courses this year. LADY SHENANDOAH, as earlier mentioned as recipient of the ATC Most Wins award, is sired by SNITZEL, as is winner of the Group 1 TAB Golden Slipper, MARHOONA.

Sadly, SNITZEL passed away last month at the age of 22, siring 23 Group 1 winners and 161 Stakes winners overall.

LONGEST SATURDAY WINNING MARGIN PRESENTED BY VINERY

LET’S FLY

The Richard & Will Freedman trained 3yo filly went to the spelling paddock on the back of a 5 and three quarter demolition of her rivals in the 3yo Benchmark 72 Handicap over 1800m at Royal Randwick on 24 May 2025. LET’S FLY is building an impressive record of three wins and two placing from ten starts and keep an eye on her in the Spring.