Brisbane jockey Ryan Wiggins is hoping to double his Group 1 winning tally when he teams up with Famous Seamus again in the Group 1 $650,000 James Boag’s Premium Doomben 10000 (1350m) at Doomben on Saturday.
Ryan Wiggins and Famous Seamus are looking for another G1 win in the Doomben 10,000 at Doomben. Photo by Daniel Costello.
Famous Seamus had the bookies cheering two weeks ago when Wiggins brought the $21 rank outsider from near the tail of the seven horse field to score an upset win in the Group 1 $400,000 Bundaberg Distilling Co. BTC Cup (1200m) at Doomben.
That win hoisted Wiggins and Famous Seamus into the Group 1 winning category, but the hard working jockey is looking for more Group 1 success this weekend.
“I don’t want to be one of those jockeys that rides a Group 1 winner and that is it,” Wiggins told the Sportsman.
“Now That I’ve done it hopefully I can work off that and have a really good next twelve months and hopefully snag a couple more.”
“I suppose the horse is a bit like myself, a little under rated and we found the right time to prove ourselves.”
Hawkesbury trainer Noel Mayfield-Smith showed a lot of faith in Wiggins and stuck with him for the BTC Cup when he could have selected any number of high profile jockeys.
Wiggins was on hand to ride Famous Seamus in trackwork when he arrived in Brisbane and secured the ride when the five year old ran fifth to Temple Of Boom in the Group 2 $175,000 Greenslopes Private Victory Stakes (1200m) at Eagle Farm on April 26.
Mayfield-Smith then had no hesitation in retaining Wiggins for the BTC Cup when regular Sydney rider Tim Clark was on the sidelines through suspension and has kept faith with him again this week.
Wiggins has been aboard Famous Seamus in his trackwork this week and said that the sprinter worked just as good on Tuesday morning as he did before claiming his first Group 1 win a fortnight ago.
“His work was just as good as before his last run, I’m confident he hasn’t taken a backward step,” Wiggins said.
Wiggins has no concerns about Famous Seamus stepping up to the 1350m to the Doomben 10,000 with the gelding having two wins at 1300m on his record.
“He has come through the run really well and I am happy to go to the 1350m,” Wiggins said.
Famous Seamus is still at the good odds of $8 with Ladbrokes.com.au to take on similar opposition in the Doomben 10,000 with BTC Cup runner up Spirit Of Boom marked at $4.80 while third placegetter Buffering has been installed the $4 top pick again after being beaten as an odds on favourite.
Proven Group 1 sprinter Rebel Dane is the fresh horse on the scene and is well in the market at $4.60 while Knoydart ($10) has also been freshened up since running second as favourite in the Group 3 $150,000 Ticketek Hall Mark Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on April 26.
