Champion jockey Hugh Bowman will make a rare return to Australia to ride Rivellino in the A$5 million G1 Golden Slipper (1200m).
Bowman, who is one of Hong Kong’s leading riders, has been booked for Kris Lees’ colt in the world’s richest two-year-old race, which will be run at Rosehill on March 22.
It is the first time Bowman has taken mounts in Australia since Derby Day at Flemington last November, and it will also be the first time he has competed in Sydney since last year’s Golden Slipper meeting.
Rivellino burst into Golden Slipper calculations after winning the G2 Skyline Stakes (1200m), but Lees and connections were forced to sweat on who would ride the colt in the Golden Slipper until after last weekend’s G2 Todman Stakes (1200m).
James McDonald, who partnered Rivellino in his Inglis Millennium win in early February, steered Golden Slipper favourite Wodeton into second behind Tentyris in the Todman Stakes.
Wodeton is scrambling to make the field with the prizemoney he has accrued from his three runs to date.
But the jockey merry-go-round is finally taking shape with Bowman confirming he will try to win his second Golden Slipper.
He rode Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott’s Farnan to victory in 2020, the first meeting held behind closed doors after the COVID-19 lockdowns.
Bowman’s appearance at Rosehill will be another feature of the Golden Slipper meeting, which will include five Group 1 races.
Bowman has already won more than 100 Group 1s in Australia and is most famously known for his partnership with wonder mare Winx, who retired in 2019 with a winning streak of 33 consecutive races, including four Cox Plate victories ∎
