McEvoy credits Queensland campaign for Half Yours’ rise

By Jordan Gerrans and Andrew Smith

Ahead of his second Queensland campaign, co-trainer Calvin McEvoy has proclaimed Melbourne Cup champion Half Yours’ trip to the Sunshine State last year was the making of the star galloper.

At this time last year, Half Yours was a relatively unknown horse and ran in a couple of lowly Benchmark races in Sydney before heading north of the border.

The gelding eventually stormed to victory in the Listed Caloundra Cup in early July over 2400 metres and from there, everything changed for the father-and-son training team of Tony and Calvin McEvoy.

The son of St Jean would go on to lift the coveted Caulfield Cup before landing the famous race that stops the nation on the first Tuesday in November.

Half Yours is back in Queensland for the carnival of 2026, which is likely to be a three-run mission that will start at the Gold Coast in the Group 2 A.D. Hollindale Stakes on Saturday week.

Speaking at Tuesday’s carnival launch, co-trainer Calvin admitted that Half Yours’ Sunshine State sojourn last year proved pivotal in his eventual spring carnival spoils.

“We believe that it was the making of the horse,” Calvin said.

“Travelling toughens up horses, it's no different to people. 

"Young people that go for a trip overseas, they come back a little bit more street smart.

“He's now just a professional racehorse and we saw that in the spring, which was springboarded off the winter campaign up here.

“When he came back down south, he obviously had a terrific base fitness.

“He didn't have a long time off after the Caloundra Cup, but any horse that campaigns through the winter, they're at a big advantage when they get down to the spring.

“They've got that little bit of residual fitness and base fitness and for that reason we didn't have to really train him hard. He just sort of came to hand beautifully.”

Just as they did last year, the McEvoy camp have set up shop at Caloundra for their winter getaway in 2026.

Half Yours will headline the team but they are also hopeful a few more promising types will bob up through the carnival.

Options, Motorsports and Silvasista are three likely Queensland contenders from the stable while Calvin also noted a few promising two-year-olds that could also make their impact.

“We love sitting down and trying to plan a team to bring up here,” the co-trainer said.

“Obviously we came up with a small team last year and had some good success, headlined by Half Yours.

“It's a recipe that's been working for a number of years for a lot of trainers, so we're very keen to do it again this year.

“We've got a small but select team which hopefully will grow with some more results down in Victoria.

“We might have up to 10 horses, 10 to 12 horses here when the carnivals in full swing.

“We took a barn there at Caloundra which we were at last year and it works great.

“The facilities are terrific; they really look after us. Tony, he bases himself up here basically for the winter, so he's very smart.

“He escapes the Melbourne winter and comes up to Queensland and he'll be overseeing the small team up here.”

Melbourne Cup champion Half Yours had his first-up run since November in the Group 1 All Aged Stakes at Randwick in the middle of April.

With Jamie Melham in the saddle, the chestnut finished a touch over four lengths behind the winner over 1400 metres.

The McEvoy stable was pleased with the run ahead of his Queensland kick-off point at the Gold Coast.

“He's more of the finished product, there's no doubt about that,” Calvin said.

“I think probably that is a result of the travel that we did with him this time last year.

“It really forces horses to grow up and that's why we're very keen to bring young horses up here to develop.

“It was a terrific run in the All Aged over an unsuitable trip of 1400 metres.

“He travelled really strongly; he was obviously left a little bit flat footed and then actually got held up from the 600 to the 400 metre mark before flying through the line.

“So, I don't think we could have asked for any more in a first-up run and he's bounced through it well.”

Half Yours will head to the Hollindale Stakes on Saturday week before looking towards the Group 1 Doomben Cup and then on to the Group 2 Q22 at Eagle Farm in the middle of June.

From there, the Cox Plate over 2026 is the stable’s ‘grand final’ target for Half Yours later in the year before returning to the Melbourne Cup to defend his crown.