A raft of TAB Queensland Winter Racing Carnival stars feature prominently in the 2021 Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings.
Announced earlier this week, three-time Group 1 winner Incentivise, who unleashed himself as one of the nation’s top stayers during Stradbroke Season, finished equal 21st in the rankings, with a peak performance rating of 122.
The Darling Downs product rattled off five consecutive victories in Queensland by a total of 42 lengths before heading south for the Victorian Spring Carnival where he was successful in three Group 1 events before running second in the Melbourne Cup.
Toowoomba trainer Steve Tregea said he is proud to see Incentivise recognised in such high regard and is still in shock at what the horse has achieved throughout 2021.
“I can’t describe the feeling of seeing a horse that I bred and raced reach those kinds of heights because you never in your wildest dreams think it will happen to you,” Tregea said.
“For a small breeder like us, we are incredibly proud of what the horse has achieved and it is an honour to see him there amongst the best horses in the world.”
Group 1 Doomben Cup champion Zaaki also features prominently, finishing equal 27th in the end-of-year rankings.
Like Incentivise, the English import catapulted himself into national stardom on the back of the TAB Queensland Winter Racing Carnival, claiming a pair of Group 2 features – the TAB A.D. Hollindale Stakes and the Sky Racing Q22 – on top of his maiden Group 1 triumph.
Zaaki shares the 27th ranking with another Queensland Group 1 winner Eduardo, who was successful in the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 before going on to enjoy a richly successful Sydney Spring campaign.
“The TAB Queensland Winter Racing Carnival has long been considered one of the premier form lines for Australian racing, and 2021 was no exception,” RQ CEO Brendan Parnell said.
“Both Incentivise and Zaaki dominated this year’s carnival before going on to win Group 1 races in Melbourne, and their considerable successes have been reflected and rewarded in the 2021 Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings.
“These results underline the strength in Queensland racing at present, and we are proud to see that reflected on the international stage.”
Hong Kong’s superstar middle-distance galloper Golden Sixty, a winner of 19 races from 21 starts, finished sixth in the rankings, the highest of any Australian-bred thoroughbred.
The six-time Group 1 champion was bred in Queensland and sold through the Element Hill draft at the 2017 Gold Coast Yearling Sale for $120,000.
Elsewhere, the Longines World's Top 100 Group 1 Races list has seen the Channel 7 Doomben Cup enhance its status to Queensland’s top rating race.
Finishing in equal 84th position, the 2000-metre feature – won by Zaaki in 2021 – is the first Queensland race to appear on the list since the TAB Doomben 10,000 finished 72nd in 2019.
Late last year, it was announced that the Doomben Cup would receive a $300,000 stakes upgrade, to be run for $1 million in 2022.