Allan Chau's fearless desire to win

By Jordan Gerrans

As young filly Fearless Win nibbles on his hat, emerging trainer Allan Chau notes the curious nature that she displays shows she just might boast above average talent. 

Former jockey-turned-trainer Chau has serious Magic Millions Classic ambitions with his daughter of Astern. 

The 38-year-old will take the first step on that journey on Friday evening when he heads to the Magic Millions The Debut with his impressive youngster. 

He describes her as ‘curious’ in her nature. 

With just a small field to contest the $250,000 The Debut, Chau is hopeful of banking enough prizemoney to have a direct passage to the $3 million Magic Millions Classic early in 2026. 

“How smart she is, that is what stands out,” Chau said of his two-year-old. 

“Everything comes natural to her. She adapted to the stable environment really quickly.

“Just little signs that she shows around the stable, she is so easy to handle for the staff.

“She is a smart little filly. She is always trying to check her surroundings out and to see what the people around her are doing.

“These are indications that she is very 'cluey' and she wants to know what is going on all the time. 

“She is happy to learn – those are the signs that she is above average.”

The Gold Coast-based horseman snapped up the young filly at the January sales earlier this year for just $10,000.

Fearless Win put in an encouraging maiden public appearance in a trial on her home deck earlier this month.

Ridden by Karl Zechner, Fearless Win had to sit wide over 800 metres but did enough to overcome Saxon Spirit from the Munce camp in the finish to book her position in The Debut.

The smiling Chau says his Magic Millions hopeful has come on from that effort and believes she will only improve under race conditions. 

“I was very impressed because I have always had a good opinion of her,” he said.

“It is easy to have an opinion of a horse in their trackwork, but to be able to deliver in a trial – that is different.

“Hopefully the next stage is to do the same on race day.

“She has progressed really nicely from the trial and taken great benefit from it.

“She has had an educational run on the course proper here at the Gold Coast, as well. She is progressing really nicely towards The Debut.”

As a former rider himself, Chau believes it is critical Zechner has a close bond with Fearless Win during her first racing preparation.

Also 38 years of age, Zechner rode her in her maiden trial as well as a recent course proper gallop around the Gold Coast surface.

For Chau to qualify Fearless Win for the 2026 Magic Millions Classic would be a monumental achievement for a relatively newcomer to training.

“It would be a very, very good confidence booster for me and my team,” he said.

“Being a young trainer with a small team, being able to have a runner on that day in the big race – it is a big achievement already on its own.

“We want to go there and be very, very competitive and obviously to win the race but to be there on the day, it is a big achievement for the young team around me.”

If Fearless Win does not bank the required prizemoney on Friday, the trainer says there are a few other options he is considering before the Classic on January 17 to help enhance her chances of a start.

Back in 2022 when Coolangatta claimed the showpiece event, Chau’s Russian Warrior was an emergency for the 1200 metre event.

Since stepping away from riding and beginning training in late 2021, Chau has made a strong first of the caper. 

He has tallied about 15 winners a campaign and has started gallopers in Group 3 and Listed events.

Chau prepares 20 horses on the GC and still rides plenty of his own trackwork. 

He rode in races for almost two decades before retiring with more than 450 winners on his resume, which included a Group 3 triumph aboard Supergiant in May of 2020.