Eye Keep Smiling - Photo courtesy Club Menangle/Pacepix
KINGMAN isn’t the only star Luke McCarthy is unleashing on Ballarat this weekend.
Australia’s champion mare Eye Keep Smiling returns from a spell to open her 2026 in the $50,000 Group 3 Make Mine Cullen (1710m).
It’s the first of three legs in Victoria’s mares’ triple crown and Eye Keep Smiling will chase them all.
The others are the $50,000 Group 3 Angelique at Cranbourne on January 31 and the $150,000 Group 1 Queen of the Pacific at Melton on February 14.
“She’s raring to go. She came to hand really quickly and has been ready to race for three weeks or so, but there hasn’t been a suitable race,” McCarthy said.
Eye Keep Smiling, who won 12 of 14 starts against her own sex last year, hasn’t raced since a fantastic third against the boys in the Group 1 Len Smith Mile at Menangle on September 7.
“It’s great to have these mares’ races to target. We want to keep her against the mares as much as we can,” McCarthy said.
McCarthy will also unveil recent stable addition Steno in the Make Mine Cullen.
A winner of 23 races and $618,803, Steno hasn’t raced since finishing third to Eye Keep Smiling in the Group 1 Golden Girl at Albion Park on July 19.
She was trained and driven by Jocelyn Young then, but plans were to get her in foal.
Raced and bred by Diane Kelly, plans to breed from Steno didn’t eventuate so they decided to give her another racing campaign, but based on the eastern seaboard.
“She’s lovely mare, I saw that firsthand in those races against Eye Keep Smiling in Brisbane during the winter,” McCarthy said.
“She trialled really well last week. I’d like to have given her a run at Menangle against the mares this week then come to Melbourne, but that race didn’t stand-up.”
With McCarthy on Eye Keep Smiling from gate seven, Nathan Jack has the drive on Steno (back row, gate eight).
Eye Keep Smiling is a commanding $1.35 favourite from the well backed Sweetnikkilou ($15 into $5) and Steno also at $5.
It's an exciting few weeks for Eye Keep Smiling's owner-breeder Jackie Gibson with the mare's first foal, a colt by Bettors Delight, to be sold at the Nutrien Sydney sale in March.
The foal was born through embryo transfer so Eye Keep Smiling could continue racing.
PHOTO: Club Menangle/Pacepix
