When Rebel Rama completely dominated an 1850m maiden at Newcastle on March 30th, trainer Marc Conners made hurried plans to launch a two pronged attack on the Adelaide carnival. He quickly nominated the daughter of Dissident for the Gr 3 Auraria Stakes (1800m), with the Australasian Oaks next cab off the rank if she performed up to expectations.
“Although her pedigree suggested a mile might be her optimum distance she was racing like a filly looking for further,” said Marc. “I actually floated her to Melbourne where she had her final gallop at Caulfield while we waited for the Auraria Stakes field and barrier draw to be announced. I was terribly disappointed when she failed to get a run, and we had to turn around and bring her home.”
Marc went back to Newcastle on April 22nd for a BM64 (1880m) in which Rebel Rama came from near last for a closing third to Raptures and Rock The Bells. A reluctance to come around horses at the 200m may have cost her a win.
The trainer decided to use Saturday’s 3YO BM72 of 2000m at Rosehill Gardens as a yardstick for a possible tilt at the Queensland Oaks to be run on June 5th. “Twelve of the seventeen runners were horses and geldings so it was a pretty decent class rise,” said Marc. “She needed to run a top race to warrant a trip to Brisbane and came through with flying colours.”
Patience is a very noticeable component in the riding technique of talented Mikayla Weir. Having her very first ride on Rebel Rama, she allowed the filly plenty of time to find her rhythm and was in front of only four others at the halfway mark. Mikayla was completely composed when the big field bunched suddenly at the 600m and began searching for runs between horses. She found gap after gap, and Rebel Rama was soon in second place chasing the leader Maranoa. As she had at Newcastle the filly again rolled in for a few strides, but the young jockey quickly had her back on an even keel. Rebel Rama was strong to the line in scoring an emphatic win.
Aided by a perfect Mikayla Weir ride, Rebel Rama scored an emphatic win in the BM72 at Rosehill - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
Rebel Rama was a $40,000 purchase by Marc at the 2019 Magic Millions sale. “I think sheer immaturity was the reason we secured her so cheaply,” said the trainer. “She was raw and backward with a lot of developing to do. I was attracted to her because her dam is a half sister to Staging, a terrific mare my father trained twenty years ago. Staging won four Gr 2’s and was placed in four Gr 1’s. Like most members of the family she never raced beyond 1600m. Rebel Rama belies her pedigree to some degree.”
Despite the fact that Rebel Rama was going to need plenty of time, Marc was able to syndicate her to a syndicate of friends and associates who heeded his wise counsel. The Dissident filly had five barrier trials over a long period of time before finally making her debut in the middle of last year. She did little in three runs before being spelled again. Next preparation she showed gradual improvement run by run before winning the aforementioned Newcastle maiden at her ninth race start.
Rebel Rama's first win! Newcastle 30/03/2021 with Jess Taylor in the saddle - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
“The owners were all pretty excited the day she won her maiden at Newcastle, but that was nothing compared to the reception they gave her at Rosehill on Saturday,” said Marc. “They’ll lift the roof off the Eagle Farm grandstand if she looms up at any stage in the straight on June 5th.”
The “house full” sign went up at Marc’s Warwick Farm stables a year ago when his father Clarry moved in with a sixteen horse team. Clarry had accepted his son’s invitation to share the stables after having sold his landmark training base “Victory Lodge” in nearby Hope St. Clarry and Marc are currently working between thirty five and forty horses between them. “We often swap notes and it’s great to have access to a second opinion from a trainer of Dad’s experience,” said Conners Jnr.
As a third generation horseman it was no surprise when young Marc became a regular around the stables before and after school at a very young age. He was actually riding some casual trackwork without the appropriate accreditation when confronted by an AJC steward one morning at Warwick Farm. Clarry quickly arranged for his son to be registered as a work rider, and Marc continued in that role for a number of years. He got to ride notables like Victory Prince, Research and Mouawad on the training track.
Before embarking on a training career in his own right, Marc took himself off for some overseas experience firstly with Guy Harwood in England and secondly with Claude “Shug” McGaughey in the USA. McGaughey was the trainer of the legendary galloper Easy Goer best known for his eight length demolition job on the great Sunday Silence in the Belmont Stakes. “A great adventure and invaluable learning curve,” said Marc. “I wouldn’t have missed it for quids.”
Marc after a win with Didntcostalot at Warwick Farm 2013 - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
Marc is puzzled that a mare called Mary Julia is credited with being his first winner as a trainer in 1991. “I don’t know where that came from but it’s incorrect,” says the fifty one year old. “My very first win was with a horse called Record Stand in a Cl 2 at Kembla in June 1993. The jockey was Billy Denmark. The horse won again next start at Canberra with Sky Racing’s John Scorse in the saddle.”
To this day he’s not sure why a group of Queensland owners selected an inexperienced young Sydney horseman to take over the training of Camino Rose in 1997. The Sea Road filly had already won five races in her home state under the tutelage of the late Paul Sutherland. “I spelled her immediately and then started afresh never dreaming that she’d change my life,” said Conners.
Camino Rose’s first six runs for Marc yielded one win and four placings. One of those placings was a great second to the fast finishing Shindig in the Gr 1 Coolmore Classic. Following a spell the filly went to Melbourne where she raced three times at Gr 3 level for a win and two unplaced efforts. Greg Childs rode her to victory in the Tristarc Stakes at Caulfield, after which she returned to NSW for a let up.
The following autumn Camino Rose resumed with a third in the listed Breeders Classic and followed that with a shock flop in the Wiggle Quality at Warwick Farm. “We corrected a minor issue and set our sights on another shot at the Coolmore Classic,” said Marc. “This time she won the Gr 1 to give a young trainer and jockey the thrill of a lifetime. “I’m still trying to win another Gr 1, while the win set Corey Brown on the path to more than 50 Gr 1’s including two Melbourne Cups. A couple of weeks later Camino Rose won the Queen Of The Turf Stakes, which was then a Gr 2 later promoted to Gr 1 status.”
A dream come true for Marc Conners - a Gr. 1 win with Camino Rose (Corey Brown) in the 1999 Coolmore Classic - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
Although another Gr 1 has eluded him, Marc has gone on to train many winners at stakes level. He won a stakes race at Caulfield with My Middi who was also placed in a Todman and Sires Produce Stakes. One of his early favourites was Crown Princess, a $20,000 yearling who amassed almost $300,000 and won a Gr 3 at Caulfield with Hugh Bowman up. “Her record could have been so much better,” said Marc. “She ran twelve metropolitan seconds. You couldn’t believe it.”
Star Of Crown and Western Beau won twelve races between them under the training of Marc Conners. The former won six metropolitan races, while Western Beau also won six including a listed Heritage Stakes at Rosehill.
Mr Clangtastic is one of Marc’s all time favourites. The son of Clang won nine races in total for almost $478,000. At one stage he won five straight including a listed Wyong Cup and a Gr 3 Colin Stephen. He actually started favourite in the Metropolitan of 2009 finishing fifth to Speed Gifted.
A lightly framed mare called Aphasia was a great money spinner for the Warwick Farm trainer. Marc won races at Randwick and Eagle Farm and a listed Wyong Cup with the daughter of Orojoya. She also ran second in a Newcastle Cup and dead heated for second in a Geelong Cup.
One of the fastest horses to come through the stable was Nan Tien with whom Marc won four races including the listed City Tatt’s Lightning Hcp and the listed Carrington Stakes. A young Danny Beasley rode Nan Tien in those two stakes wins.
Marc doubled as the strapper on this occasion at Gosford. He won the race with Paige n' Paris - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
In more recent times the trainer has enjoyed considerable success with Pimpala Secret whose five wins included a Hawkesbury Guineas, and the very speedy mare Super Too who had Randwick and Moonee Valley wins among her five successes.
During his formative years Marc only needed to be a good listener to glean valuable knowledge. Apart from the wise counsel offered by his father, he was also able to draw on the wisdom of his grandfather Clarry Snr who died in 2014 at the remarkable age of 98. The elder Conners was a product of the era when a battling trainer lived by his wits and made few mistakes. “He was a great old world horseman who passed on many little hints that I’ve never forgotten,” said the third generation trainer.
Marc’s stable foreman is his 21 year old son Mitchell who gives every indication the family tradition will continue for at least one more generation. Marc and Michelle Conners are also the proud parents of daughters Mikaela and Mia. “It’s just as well Mitchell has inherited the training genes, because the girls have no interest at all,” said Marc. “Mikaela is a dress designer and Mia is in the occupational therapy field.”
Marc believes there’s an upside to the futile exercise of sending Rebel Rama interstate recently when she failed to gain a run in the Auraria Stakes. “These young fillies have to get used to long road trips,” he said. “The experience of the trip to Caulfield will stand her in good stead for next week’s journey to Brisbane.”
This won’t be Marc’s first crack at the time honoured Queensland Oaks first run seventy years ago. He went pretty close in 1996 when his genuine filly Aphasia finished third, only a long head and a neck behind Arctic Scent and Sonata. Arctic Scent is one of the classier fillies to win the Oaks as she proved a few months later in winning the Caulfield Cup.
Rebel Rama has emerged as a genuine chance in the classic to be run over 2200m at Eagle Farm. She’s been handled with great patience by the trainer who saw something in the very immature filly the moment she walked into the sale ring. A respectable barrier draw and a trouble free trip on Saturday week would afford her the opportunity to unleash a similar burst to the one she produced at Rosehill on Saturday.
Camino Rose came out of the blue more than twenty years ago. Rebel Rama has been a work in progress from the moment she arrived in the Conners yard at Warwick Farm. As Bart Cummings famously said, “the least used thing in the racing game is patience”.
Marc Conners has used truckloads of the priceless commodity over the last year, and that’s the sole reason Rebel Rama will soon be on her way to Brisbane.
(Banner image - Rebel Rama looked pretty pleased with herself as Mikayla Weir brought her back to the winners circle at Rosehill on Saturday - courtesy Bradley Photographers.)