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| Staff Writer |
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The retirements of Nature Strip and Eduardo have officially signaled a major shake-up in the lineup of sprinters for the highly anticipated A$20 million The TAB Everest, set to take place at Royal Randwick next month.
Out of last year's The Everest contenders, only two horses, defending champion Giga Kick and minor placegetter Mazu, have secured their spots in the world's richest turf race on October 14.
Joining them will be I Wish I Win, the impressive winner of both the Golden Eagle and TJ Smith, along with Think About It, a dual Group One victor, who have also earned their slots in the Everest.
However, with eight slots still up for grabs, there is plenty of room for new faces to make their mark. Notably, at least six of the sprinters who participated in last year's race have decided to retire from the sport.
Trainer Joe Pride confirmed the retirement of his exceptional 10YO sprinter, Eduardo, on Sunday. Following a commendable fourth-place finish (while Nature Strip finished sixth) in Remarque's Concorde Stakes, Eduardo has officially concluded his illustrious racing career.
"We are retiring Eduardo,'' Pride said. "He is 100 percent sound and finishes on the big stage ahead of Nature Strip.''
Pride proudly revealed that Eduardo had faced off against Nature Strip a total of 13 times, with a record of 5-8. The trainer described this record as "not too bad!" considering the tough competition.
Eduardo’s Career Under Chris Waller’s Guidance
Eduardo, under the guidance of Chris Waller, had an impressive career with 35 races under his belt. Out of these, he had secured victory in 12 races, including two at the prestigious Group One level in The Galaxy and Doomben 10,000. His outstanding performances earned him a staggering A$7.926 million in prizemoney.
Nature Strip, on the other hand, recently announced his retirement after a lackluster sixth-place finish in the Concorde Stakes. Trained by the legendary Chris Waller, this nine-year-old sprinter had an illustrious career with 44 starts. He emerged victorious in 22 races, an incredible nine of which were at the Group One level. Nature Strip amassed an impressive prizemoney total of A$20.76 million.
Some of Nature Strip's career highlights included his triumph in the 2021 The Everest, where Eduardo finished third. Additionally, he achieved three consecutive wins in the TJ Smith Stakes and a dominant victory in the King's Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot.
With Nature Strip's retirement, Waller's Everest slot remained up for grabs. However, the Hall of Fame trainer identified Golden Slipper winner Shinzo as a frontrunner for the slot, provided the colt performs well in the upcoming Golden Rose later this month.
Nature Strip and Eduardo had been prominent figures in The Everest in recent years, but this season marked a changing of the guard in Australia's elite sprinting ranks. Six starters from last year's Everest, including Nature Strip and Eduardo, chose to retire from racing. Other retired sprinters included Jacquinot, Kementari, Shades Of Rose, and Joyful Fortune.
Masked Crusader, who had participated in the last two Everests, delivered a subpar performance, finishing 10th in The Heath at Caulfield. There were speculations about whether this race marked his last appearance on the track. Private Eye and Overpass, who finished second and sixth in last year's Everest, were still in contention for the upcoming Randwick sprint.