Smith eyes winning charge from ex-Hong Kong sprinter at Randwick

2 months ago 21

By Craig Kerry

January 2, 2026 — 4.08pm

Warwick Farm trainer Matt Smith was stumped when he couldn’t get Beauty Charge, a five-time winner in Hong Kong, to even trial well when he first came to his stable.

Now he says the seven-year-old “works like a stakes horse every day of the week”.

Beauty Charge, carrying the pink, white and black colours, finishes second on debut in Australia in October at Randwick.

That has yet to translate to a win across four starts in Australia, but Smith hopes a drop in grade, rise in distance and a handy draw will change all that at Randwick on Saturday.

Beauty Charge will chase an overdue win the 1400m benchmark 88 handicap, the eighth on the program.

The Great Britain-bred sprinter bled and failed to finish in his final Hong Kong start in December 2024. After a 31-week spell, Smith trialled the veteran four times before he debuted with a half-length second to Disneck at Randwick in a benchmark 94 on October 4 over 1200m.

Since then, he has finished well back in the $2 million Sydney Stakes at Randwick and $1 million Meteorite at Cranbourne, before a one and a half-length sixth in the listed Razor Sharp, all over 1200m.

Smith said senior jockeys Craig Williams and Kerrin McEvoy recommended taking Beauty Charge up to 1400m and he was hoping the move and drop in grade would help break his drought. Another senior hoop, Nash Rawiller, rides the $7.50 (TAB) chance from gate two on Saturday.

“The horse was in bad shape when we got it,” Smith said.

“It was in a bad frame of mind and it took forever to get it going, even to trial well. Then all of a sudden it was happy and away it went.

“I was going to the races first up thinking it would win. It was working that good, I was thinking this is a stakes horse every day of the week, so I was happy with the run but disappointed he didn’t win.

“He can definitely go better than where he’s at. I’m a bit disappointed looking at his form, the way it’s all turned out.

“We couldn’t scratch from the wide gate in the Meteorite because of the conditions of the race, so he went around with no hope from the bad gate.

“The start before at Randwick he missed the start after rearing up in the gates, so his form should be better than it is.

“Last start he went back to the inside and it probably wasn’t ideal. I think he’s better getting to the outside, but he needed the run, too.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he won on Saturday. I’ll be disappointed if he doesn’t run top three.

“If he can win a race or two, we can give him a little break and he’ll be super next prep.”

Smith, meanwhile, was hoping for another scratching in the 10th race, a benchmark 78 over 2000m, to get Placid Pearl a start.

The four-year-old mare, a $10 hope, has finished third in midweek grade her past two starts and has gate one on Saturday.

“She’s going good,” said Smith, who will likely start long-shot Subarctic ($61) in the race.

“I’d like to get her in there from the good gate and she’d be close to the mark.

“I think she will make a nice stayer in the future, once she gets up over a bit further. She just gets a bit hot at the moment.”

Smith said Idle Flyer was ticking over well ahead of an autumn return but exciting sprinter Lyles would miss the carnival because of a hoof injury.

He said stable star Headwall, which missed a potential Everest shot because of injury, had a month of recovery to go and was a late autumn prospect.

Stanley keen to stake claim

Apprentice Will Stanley is focused on making the most of “probably one of the better books I’ve had in town” on Saturday at Randwick.

The three-kilogram claimer, who has 11 metropolitan winners, picked up the ride on Highway Handicap favourite Navy Buoy ($3.30), which won an identical race at the track under Tommy Berry two weeks ago by three and a half lengths. Stanley’s claim means the Paul Snowden-trained four-year-old carries just half a kilogram more, and the draw in three helps his chances to again dictate terms out front.

“That’s a good pick-up,” Stanley said.

“He won pretty well the other. He jumped, led and gave them something to chase and was too good.

“I’d say that would be the plan again, but I’ll have to talk to Paul.”

The 22-year-old, who moved from Orange to join the Kris Lees stable at Newcastle in late 2024, also has two rides each for top trainer Ciaron Maher and the Richard and Will Freedman stable.

Will Stanley after winning on Flying Embers for John Thompson.

He partners last-start Nowra Cup winner Rolling Magic ($8) in the fifth and Magnatear ($7), which won at Randwick November 4, in the seventh for the Freedmans.

“Rolling Magic, he’s a tough old horse,” Stanley said.

“He puts himself in a race and gives himself every chance to win, and taking the weight off is always going to help him.

“Magnatear is a tough old horse as well and is quite a quality galloper. He won last start quite well and the start before he got beat by a nice horse in Vivy Air and he was beaten only two lengths.”

He rides Covert Thinking ($19), a mare he has won on three times in five attempts, in the fourth and Raf Attack ($61) in the 10th for Maher.

“She’s had to step up in grade this prep but both runs back have been really good,” he said of Covert Thinking.

“She just needs a bit of sting out of the track.

“Raf Attack’s been beaten only a couple of lengths in those listed races and he’s a quality galloper. Taking the weight off is a huge help for him. Most of the races he’s won, he’s been down in the weights.”

Stanley said he felt more comfortable in the Sydney jockeys’ room these days and the focus was to be in town as much as possible.

“I’ve still got two kilos at the provincials and through the week I’ll get a few rides there, so that helps in trying to knock it down as well,” he said.

“The ideal plan is while the carnival’s on in Queensland and the opportunities come that bit more, is to outride the three kilos.”