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By Craig Kerry
January 1, 2026 — 5.00pm
After a career-best calendar year, trainer Michael Freedman hopes a Godolphin pair on his home track at Randwick and Magic Millions Guineas favourite Ninja at Eagle Farm on Saturday can strike early blows towards bigger success in 2026.
Freedman had 50 winners, including 10 in stakes races, across the first five months of the 2025-26 season, continuing an outstanding strike-rate of 20.1 per cent from the 2024-25 campaign. That season featured 66 winners and five at stakes level, highlighted by Marhoona’s Golden Slipper victory.
Ninja, left, winning at Rosehill on August 16.Credit: Getty Images
This season, Freedman also expanded with a Gold Coast satellite stable under the care of his brother, Hall of Fame trainer Lee.
“It’s been a great year,” Freedman said on New Year’s Eve.
“I’d say it would be our best calendar year. I don’t know in terms of numbers of winners, but certainly I think in terms of feature race winners. And our strike-rate has been great, so we can use it as a platform to really build on it and continue to find some nice horses because whilst we’re not as big in numbers, we try to keep the quality up.
“We’ve got some nice horses around us now, and we did a deal with Lee to open up the new stable on the Gold Coast, which is settling in and working well.
“It’s been a busy year, but a good year, and hopefully it gives us a good platform to kick on into ’26.”
Apocalyptic, Marhoona and Manaal starred for Freedman in the spring and they are set to trial ahead of autumn returns. Godolphin’s Ohope won listed and group 2 races in the spring and looks likely to target the Randwick Guineas in the autumn.
On Saturday, Freedman will test Godolphin’s Outspan and Cinsault at Randwick.
Outspan ($7), a Bivouac colt, will debut in the maiden two-year-old plate (1000m) off two trials.
“He’s a nice colt and I think he’s just gradually improving the longer he’s in work,” Freedman said.
“Whilst 1000 metres might be a touch sharp for him on Saturday, I think he’s colt who can hopefully improve off it and appreciate going over 1100 and 1200. He’s a nice, big, strong horse and I’m looking forward to seeing him run.
“It’s always a bit difficult to know where they are going to measure up heading into the autumn, but we’ll give him his chance and see where he gets to. He’s got solid trial form and he’s had a nice foundation, and I was happy with his gallop on Tuesday.”
Cinsault, a four-year-old Brazen Beau mare, broke her maiden at her ninth start for James Cummings and backed it up on debut for Freedman with a close win at Canterbury over 1200m. She was a $3.80 favourite for the sixth, a benchmark 78 handicap (1400m) for fillies and mares.
“It was a good effort first-up over the 1200,” Freedman said.
“It was a very leader-dominated track that night. She sat in the one-one, but it still wasn’t easy to make up ground there. She toughed it out and I think she’s come on from the run.
“It’s a bit of a jump in grade, but she’s got a nice, soft draw and 1400 I think should suit.”
At Eagle Farm, Ninja, a $4 top elect for the MM Guineas at the Gold Coast on January 17, was a $2.50 favourite in the Vo Rogue Plate from gate 12.
“He’s in good order,” he said.
“It’s a bit of a tricky barrier, so hopefully he can get a bit of luck from out there.
“We’ve got 28 boxes on the Gold Coast, so we pretty much keep that full with some of the local horses Lee kept there and obviously I’ve been sending horses from Sydney to race up there.
“It works as a good platform hopefully for the Magic Millions carnival and winter carnival.”
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