Waterhouse and Bott target another JRA Chairman’s Handicap

By Jordan Gerrans

The JRA Chairman’s Handicap of 2025 helped launch Sir Delius into superstar status in Australia and the training team of Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott are back for more this year.

Sir Delius, who is now a multiple Group 1 champion, has not returned to the Sunshine State for another winter campaign, but the Waterhouse and Bott camp have brought another couple of stablemates north.

Just Fine – set to be ridden by Tim Clark – and Alalcance with Martin Harley in the saddle will headline their hopes in the 2000 metre event, which will be run at Group 3 level.

Just Fine and Alalcance galloped on the Doomben course proper on Tuesday morning with co-trainer Bott overseeing their final piece of work before they commence their Brisbane winter campaigns.

“They worked up as a pair together,” Bott said.

“They are just kicking off their campaigns or their winter campaigns here.

“I've got some more targets in store for them, but they both worked up nicely on Tuesday morning.”

Just Fine ($10 chance with the bookmakers) and Alalcance ($14 shot) have both raced in Group company over the last year, but neither have been able to break through.

The Sydney-based Waterhouse and Bott yard were also set to have Lady Of Camelot in the Doomben 10,000 on Saturday, but the mare has since been scratched from the event.

The JRA Chairman’s Handicap is a race that the stable has enjoyed success in over the years.

Sir Delius won his first race on Australian soil in the event in the winter of 2025.

Before that, Stampede claimed the Group 3 honour for the training team back in 2017. 

Waterhouse, training solo at the time, won the race with So Assertive in 2004 with Queenslander Chris Munce aboard.

Sir Delius won the race this time last year as a well-backed commodity on a Heavy 8 surface.

While there were high hopes for the son of Frankel back then, he has gone well beyond those expectations in the months since.

The five-year-old entire has gone on to score three times at Group 1 level and be placed in elite company on two more occasions.

Sir Delius was last at the races when blitzing the quality Queen Elizabeth Stakes field at Randwick in April.

Sir Delius won’t make a return trip to Queensland this year, but Bott says the JRA Chairman’s Handicap in 2025 was a perfect kick-off point for the eventual Group 1 superstar.

“He's been excellent for the stable,” the co-trainer said.

“It is a shame we couldn't bring him up this year.

“He just obviously had a bigger autumn campaign than last time.

“It was a great place to kick him off, no doubt.”

The Brisbane winter has long been a happy hunting ground for the Waterhouse and Bott barn.

Sir Delius was the star in 2025 while Alligator Blood famously won the Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap in 2022.

They have also lifted feature honours with Hawaii Five Oh (Fred Best Classic in 2023), Knights Order (Brisbane Cup in 2021) and Converge in the J.J. Atkins of 2021, among other major victories.

“I love it,” Bott said.

“It's such a great carnival. We see, year in, year out, the results off the back of it.

“Horses continue to come through here and go on and perform, particularly very well through the early part of the spring for us.

“So, there is no doubt that plays on our mind in targeting the carnival. It is a great time of year to have the horses up here doing so well.”