Prior to the arrival of Sky Channel’s home service, most trainers would be on track whenever they had horses competing. They communicated with owners before a race, and enjoyed a celebratory drink with them after a win. I have vivid recollections of high profile Sydney trainers being regulars at places like Kembla, Hawkesbury, Gosford, Wyong and Newcastle. One good example was Jack Denham who’d insist on saddling his own runners in the days when trainers went to the races.
Fast forward to the days of huge teams, training partnerships and extended TV coverage. In some cases the stable foreman is better known at the races than the actual trainer who’s back at the stables up to his or her neck in paperwork. Most trainers will tell you they see more on Sky Thoroughbred Central, than they do when they go to the track.
Newcastle’s Mark Minervini prefers the old fashioned way. When I called him on Sunday morning he was getting ready to leave for the Taree meeting where his only runner, longshot Astral Thoughts was engaged in the opening race. Despite having made the round trip to Kembla on Saturday, he was happy to be on the road again to join Astral Thought’s many owners at the Taree Cup meeting. “I guess it’s the way I was brought up in Adelaide,” says Mark. “It’s a delight to share the elation of the owners when their horse wins, or to help pick them up when things haven’t gone well. It’s a fact of life that there are more bad days than good.”
Mark enjoys nothing more than sharing the thrill of a win with owners - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
The former South Australian had two memorable days at the races last week. At Newcastle on Tuesday he and a large group of owners were thrilled to see their three year old filly Smiling Prophet outspeed her rivals in a 900m maiden at just her third race start.. “She’s a natural speedster who took a while to mature, but she’s putting it all together now,” said Mark. “Her speed is her best asset and we’ll look for the right races. She was hesitant out of the gates but reached the lead pretty quickly. I liked the way she stuck her head out over the last 200m. We’ll aim her at a Class1 at Newcastle over the same trip on December 3rd. “
Mark first sighted Smiling Prophet when he visited Tony and Aaron Bott’s Evergreen Stud at Heatherbrae in early 2021. “I actually inspected their full draft and liked this filly instantly,” said the trainer. “She was in the Scone sale held at Inglis Riverside, and was passed in when she failed to reach her $30,000 reserve. We later negotiated successfully with Aaron and Tony.”
Lightly raced Smiling Prophet relished the 900m trip to easily win her maiden for Mikayla Weir - courtesy Bradley Photographers.
Mark made light of the three hour trip to Kembla Grange on Saturday where the Illawarra Turf Club put on a great show in delightful weather conditions. His one runner was lightly raced four year old Quick Tempo whose BM 78 win took his record to six wins from just thirteen starts. In August the gelding finished just behind the placegetters in three fairly strong city races, after which Mark gave him a “freshen”. He then started favourite in a 1000m BM84 at Randwick on Melbourne Cup day but “blew” his chances by walking out of the gates.He came from last to finish midfield only 2.5 lengths from the winner Key Largo. A drop in Benchmark at Kembla saw him start second favourite in a wide betting race. Jason Collett had the ride and earned Mark’s admiration.
The son of Rubick didn’t fly the gates but began much better than he had at Randwick. Although wide throughout, he raced with cover and straightened up about five lengths off the leader Way To The Stars. Despite being slightly hampered at the 300m by Esteemed Lady who was taken wider by Capital Reign, Quick Tempo dropped into another gear. In fact it could be said the slight “brush” with Esteemed Lady seemed to switch him on. He grabbed the lead close to home before holding off the fast finishing Sacrimony. It’s interesting to note that his time of 55.94 was slightly better than the 56.32 registered by Athelric in winning The Warra later in the day.
Quick Tempo opened his Metro account at Kembla Grange on Saturday - courtesy Steve Hart Photographics.
“Had things worked out according to plan we wouldn’t still have Quick Tempo in the stable,” said Mark. “My wife Michelle and I bought him from the 2020 Inglis Easter Sale Number 2. Our plan was to get him to the trials with a view to selling him to Hong Kong if he showed enough talent. The Hong Kong agents were all fired up after he won trials at Newcastle and Wyong, but assessed him as too small and dropped off overnight. We put a syndicate together and the rest is history. He’s got six wins under the belt and is improving with every run. I intend to keep him fresh, and you won’t see him for three to four weeks.”
Mark was understandably nervous in early 2019 when he and Michelle made the massive decision to move their training operation to NSW. He’d been able to secure sixteen boxes at the Newcastle racecourse and was anxious to regenerate his career in a state where prize money levels were rapidly on the rise. He obviously expected a huge defection by his South Australian owners, and was both surprised and delighted when the majority elected to retain their involvement with the stable. He arrived with eleven horses, half of which were two year olds. “I was completely lost for the first few months,” he recalled. “I didn’t know a soul and knew absolutely nothing about the local racing scene. I soon realised Newcastle is a wonderful place to train horses with easy access to tracks which cater for all classes of horses. You’d need the Army to get me out of here now. I’ll always be grateful to the Newcastle Jockey Club who gave me enormous support in relocating and in all subsequent dealings.”
Here was a fifty three year old ex Adelaide horse trainer in 2019, who needed some early success to announce his arrival in a ferociously competitive racing arena. A win with his very first runner seemed an unreachable target. One of his small team was a maidener called Calipari who Mark had purchased from the Inglis Digital sale in late 2018 for $42,500. The son of Written Tycoon had been a $270,000 yearling for the stallion seeking China Horse Club who were reluctant to keep him when it became obvious he needed to be gelded. Calipari had registered one second in three runs for Team Snowden. He ran two placings as a gelding at Morphettville but Mark suspected he had minor underlying issues. He opted for a very lengthy spell. When Calipari stepped out at Newcastle in August of 2019, he hadn’t raced for eight months. It didn’t matter. The new look gelding strolled home in the 900m maiden with Aaron Bullock up. Mark Minervini had gotten away to a dream start with his very first runner in his adopted home state.
Mark chats with owners after Quick Tempo's Kembla win - courtesy Steve Hart Photographics.
Calipari isn’t Mark’s only success story from the Inglis Digital Online Auction. In December of 2018 he secured former WA mare Mica Lil for $20,000 on behalf of a large group of Adelaide enthusiasts. Expertly managed by Mark, the daughter of Testa Rossa won just over $100,000 and was Gr 1 placed before being sold as a broodmare for $200,000. What a pity every small owner can’t enjoy a similar experience. The trainer’s affinity with mares was highlighted a decade before Mica Lil came into his life.
He purchased Vormista on spec for $130,000 at an Inglis Premier Sale and was delighted when she was snapped up by loyal stable clients Jeff Halsall, Brent Cannon and Paul Inlander. Vormista won a race at Gr 2 level , and ran second in three high profile Gr 1 sprints, the BTC Cup, Manikato Stakes and Australia Stakes. She was retired after sustaining a hind leg fracture with a record of four wins and six placings for $468,000 in prize money. “I’ve been waiting patiently for another Vormista to walk into my yard,” says Mark.
He currently has around thirty five horses on the books- sixteen in the main stable, eight or ten in pre training and the rest in spelling paddocks. He’s excited about the upcoming trial debut of two of the most expensive horses he’s ever purchased at yearling sales. One of them is a Lonhro colt named Toyger who cost $100,000 , the other a $120,000 Rubick filly named Wezza . Both are pleasing their trainer at home, and will appear at official trials in the next few weeks.
Mark and Michelle Minervini have long been conscious of the role played by social media in the racing industry. Their promotional material is coordinated by Melbourne based Daniel Borg who gets the message across without being over the top. “I want people to know how we’re going, and what horses we have available for syndication without being in the faces of potential owners.”
Mark with his $20,000 Inglis Online purchase Mica Lil.
It’s been just over three years since the Minervini operation transferred to Newcastle. Mark has gone quietly about his business, making the most of limited opportunities. Like another famous trainer whose career began in Adelaide, Minervini places enormous credence in plain old patience. He’ll wait another few weeks rather than waste an entire preparation. Most times he’s right. For owners who appreciate a face to face chat with their trainer, you can be sure he’ll be at the races the next time your horse goes around. There’s a fair splash of the old world horse trainer in Mark Minervini, and his owners love it!
(Banner image - Quick Tempo (Jason Collett) wins the BM78 at The Gong meeting on Saturday - courtesy Steve Hart Photographics.)