Under showery conditions, the opening race on the final day of the 2025 Melbourne Cup carnival, the $400,000 Restricted Listed VRC Inglis Banner (1000m), has been run and won, with Ciaron Maher’s Street Boss filly Calamari Ring impressing on debut.
With two public jumpouts under her belt, including recording success at her most recent one, the 2yo Street Boss filly was sent out equal favourite with last start Listed Debutant Stakes runner-up Free Flying.
When the gates crashed opened, the field split into two with Calamari Ring settling third in the group of four towards the inside rail, while the Ben, Will and JD Hayes trained Angelic Rise, one of four runners for the stable, took up the running of the other division.
When the 300m mark was reached, it was quite clear the inside division had the better of those down the outside fend, and when Clinton McDonald’s Streisand took the lead, the daughter of Magnus looked as if she would hold off the other runners until Mark Zahra and Calamari Ring were starting to make a challenge.
While the margin was narrow on the line as Calamari Ring took the prize, she appeared to have a little in reserve. Recording her second black type placing in as many starts, Streisand finished in second, while Tony and Calvin McEvoy’s Bohemian Rhapsody took third, just over two lengths from the winner.
“The team are doing a good job with these babies and Brownie is doing the right job on top of them as well,” said Maher post-race. “I can’t thank the team enough and the owner, it’s our first horse with him, and he’s a single owner, and he’s got a good one on his hands.”
“She’s got a lot in front of her. I didn’t think she would be at the races this early, but she’s just done the right things and kept progressing, and that’s what good horses do.
“The Diamond could be on the cards with natural improvement. To do that at her first look down the straight, she’s got a lot of upside. The Blue Diamond series has got a nice ring to it. We haven’t won that yet, so we would like to tick that off.”
“That is our first runner for the owner so what way to start. I didn’t think she’d get to the races this early but as good horses do, they do well in training and every time we ask for a little bit of her, it brought her on.
“She’s got a bright future.”
Winning jockey Ethan Brown was confident he was in the right part of the track.
“I wanted to come down the middle,” said Brown. “We drew perfectly to hold a line, and it was the right part of the track to hold our rhythm.
“She trialled against the older horses on a wet track, the track’s very wet today, but she handled it well. She was well prepared by Ciaron, as per usual and is only going to improve and furnish into a lovely three-year-old.”
“You can’t debut a horse in much better fashion than that.
“I thought anywhere up the middle of the track would be fine. Hard on the rail would be worse. Once she let down, she let down nicely.”
Collecting $252,649 first taking the prize, Calamari Ring was a $140,000 purchase for Hall Of Fame / Shane McGrath Bloodstock from the draft of Two Bays Farm draft at the Inglis Great Southern Weanling Sale, before being withdrawn when offered as a yearling through the draft of Widden Stud at the Magic Millions yearling sale.
The second winner and first at black type level from three to the races out of the Exceed And Excel mare Excelsior Island, herself a half-sister to New Zealand Champion 2YO and Group 1 winner War Horse and to the dam of stakes winners Zee Falls and American Wolf.
From the family of the Group 1 producing sire California Dane, Excelsior Island foaled a filly by Swettenham Stud’s Rubick last season and is due to foal this season to Widden Stud’s Written Tycoon stallion Dirty Work.
Calamari Ring became the 84th stakes winner for Darley’s Street Boss who has already been represented during the carnival by Group 1 winning colt Tentyris, and is standing this season at a fee of $66,000 (inc. GST).
