GRAFF MAKES WINNING RETURN
Trainer Danny O'Brien has resurrected the racing career of Graff, with the sprinter winning his first race for more than two years when he stormed home from the rear to win the Group 2 Caulfield Sprint on Saturday.
Graff's racing career looked in tatters after going through a string of six races without being placed, but his owners Australian Bloodstock then in the winter sent him from Kris Lees to O'Brien, who has yards at Flemington and on Thirteenth Beach near Ocean Grove.
Despite his loss of form and time in the wilderness, Graff is still a stallion and so O'Brien is keen to further bolster his CV during the Flemington Carnival with a number of straight-track sprints on his radar.
Graff is by Star Witness, who O'Brien trained to win the 2010 Blue Diamond Stakes and Coolmore Stud Stakes.
O'Brien explained he had known Graff for a lot longer than the few months he has trained him.
"I've followed him his whole career," he said. "I actually bred him. Antony Thompson and I bred him and sold him at the Magic Millions to Alan Bell.
"I've known him since he was a foal, so it's good to be back involved with him and it's good to bring him back to winning form.
"He's a horse that's always shown talent and raced at the top level throughout. Hopefully this can give him a real confidence boost and we can get him back to winning another good race, not that winning a Group 2 on Caulfield Cup Day is not a good race anyway.
"We're heading to the Group 2 race on Derby Day (TAB Stakes, formerly Linlithgow) with him, so I'd say we'll still go that way and potentially back up (into the Group 1 Darley Classic).
"There's a lot of good sprints in the autumn if we can just keep him happy and bouncy, I'm sure he can get into another good race."
Ridden quietly by Damien Oliver, Graff ($8) stormed over the top of his rivals to win by a length-and-a-quarter from Fabergino ($9), with $41 roughie Crystal Dreamer nosing out $1,95 favourite Alfa Oro for third.
Story by Andrew Eddy for Racing.com
Pic by Racing Photos