Carrington Stakes then paddock for Whinchat | Just horse racing

No one is more aware of the idiosyncrasies of the talented gelding Whinchat than regular jockey Jay Ford.

The hooper best known for his partnership with world traveler Takeover Target has been aboard the David Pfieffer-trained gelding for all seven wins and hopes to add an eighth-place finish in the Listed Carrington Stakes (1400m) at Randwick on Saturday.

The six-year-old gelding has placed once from four attempts at black type level, narrowly beaten by The Instructor in the Luskin Star Stakes (1300m) at Scone in May 2025, but will be in the best form of his career on Saturday.

Whinchat was last seen leading at Wyong in the benchmark 100, winning by two lengths, in a performance that Ford said was pleasing to watch.

“I’ve been with him since day one,” said Ford /

“It’s been a long process, he’s always shown that ability, but he just had his quirks and stuff.

“That was the first time he won in two years. He is very talented, but he has a mind of his own and some days you see the best of him and other days you don’t.

“He’s got the hang of it all recently, so hopefully he can perform like that again, and the Carrington looks like a good race for him.”

Occasional pre-race antics and accidents on the barrier have prevented Whinchat from increasing his numbers, and Ford believes the key is limiting the number of runs in his preparation.

“He’s not a horse that can go through long preparations,” Ford said.

“As soon as he gets third and fourth, we start to have problems with him in terms of barriers.

“From all reports, Dave came through his recent win very well.

“I’m pretty sure he’ll take a break after his next start. There’s not much available for him, so Saturday will be his last run before preparation.”

Whinchat has drawn barrier 12 of 13 in Saturday’s $200,000 Carrington Stakes to open a $3.60 favourite.

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