In-form jockey Sam Clipperton will be reunited with his old favourite Monton in the Listed $100,000 Festival Stakes (1500m) at Rosehill on Saturday.
Sam Clipperton and Monton will reunite in the Festival Stakes at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.
The Ron Quinton trained Monton is lining up for his fourth Festival Stakes and Clipperton was aboard when they combined for the first time to win this race in 2011.
Clipperton has been Monton’s regular rider since and had secured another three wins along the way but has missed the mount on the eight year old at his last three outings with apprentice Taylor Marshall taking the mount.
Marshall was successful on Monton two starts back winning the $85,000 Sydney Markets Filante Handicap (1500m) at Rosehill on October 25 before running second to Strawberry Boy in the Listed $100,000 Lander Toyota Ladies Day Cup (1400m) at Hawkesbury on November 6.
Quinton was more than pleased to see his former apprentice team back up with Monton and couldn’t be happier with the form of both horse and rider.
“I don’t think there’s a jockey riding better than Sam at the moment,” Quinton told Racenet.
“He’s really blossomed and he gets on well with this bloke.”
And of Monton, Quinton said “He’s still very sound and going as well as ever.”
“He is the same now as he ever was. Nothing’s changed.”
“He is a beautiful sound horse. Sure he’s getting older but he doesn’t know that.”
Clipperton joined the senior jockeys at the beginning of the new racing season in August and has quickly cemented his place in the riding ranks with fifteen and a half metropolitan wins this season and is riding for some of the biggest stables in Sydney including the international Godolphin operation.
The young jockey rode a winning treble on the Kensington track at Randwick last Saturday on Terai for Godolphin, Eisenhower for Gai Waterhouse and two year old Aegean Sea for Clarry Connors and has also recorded a Group 1 placing when third on the John Thompson trained Hooked in the $500,000 The Star Epsom (1600m) at Randwick on October 4.
“It’s been a bit smoother than I thought,” Clipperton said.
“I have set myself goals as a senior rider. One of them is to win a Group One race within two years.
“The closest I’ve come to a Group One win was in the Epsom.”
Monton has been allocated the top weight of 60kgs for the Festival Stakes with the Tony McEvoy trained Mouro to carry 59kgs.
