Latest news with #WarMachine
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Sport
- News.com.au
Hobby trainer Craig Cousins seeks redemption with The Inflictor at Eagle Farm as he reflects on Stradbroke heartbreak
Hobby trainer Craig Cousins couldn't bear to watch the standard replays of the $3m Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap after the story of cult galloper The Inflictor didn't follow the fairytale script. In a magical Stradbroke week that left the 60-year-old truck driver mentally and physically exhausted after being sought after by almost every media outlet on the eastern seaboard, Cousins was left feeling flat after The Inflictor finished 11th in Queensland's premier race two weeks ago. The Ben, JD and Will Hayes -trained War Machine ended up convincingly winning the Stradbroke ahead of Queenslander Yellow Brick and Sydney star Private Eye. Four-year-old gelding The Inflictor will be back on Saturday at Eagle Farm for a crack at the $160,000 Listed Tattersall's Mile, with Rachel King on board after his regular rider Cejay Graham copped a two-week suspension on Stradbroke day that she is still serving. King and Graham are close friends and used to live together when Graham was travelling regularly between her home town Port Macquarie and Sydney, where she was apprenticed to leading trainers Peter and Paul Snowden. War Machine WINS the G1 Stradbroke Handicap! ðŸ�† Tim Clark with a flawless performance in the saddle! — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) June 14, 2025 • Keeping up with the Jones': From outback to Group 1 big smoke 'I'm still a truck driver,' Cousins joked this week when contacted by Racenet. 'At least he (The Inflictor) showed me that he's up to Group class because he had no luck whatsoever in the Stradbroke. 'It was a hard watch. I haven't even seen the replay, although I watched a couple of drone replays. 'Nash (Rawiller on Private Eye) cut him off early and the horse checked himself. 'He had no racing room whatsoever after that but the positives I took out of it is that he's up to competing on that level and he certainly didn't disgrace himself. 'That was the anticlimax to a great week. It was hard to take on the day. 'We were going out to The Star (casino) afterwards and I just couldn't go. It took the wind out of my sails, put it that way. It was a big fortnight, geez I had some interviews.' It stung even more that the Stradbroke prizemoney went down to 10th place ($36,000) so The Inflictor's connections were left out of pocket on the day but ahead overall, with the gelding earning almost $500,000, winning six out of his 23 races. Cousins said he was happy with drawing the widest barrier (14) for the Tatt's Mile on Saturday because $4 favourite The Inflictor could 'float across at his own steam'. 'I think Rachel will suit him,' the trainer said. 'I booked her on the Sunday after the Stradbroke once Cejay was suspended. She's excited to be on.' Cousins said The Inflictor would have a three-week break after the Tatt's Mile before being targeted for some Group races in Sydney, although he was yet to map out a firm plan. 'If you try to give him a two-month spell then he gets the sulks,' he said. 'I've had a look at the Racing NSW diary and I couldn't really cement anything but I definitely want to go to Sydney with him. 'He'll be a better horse next prep and he's been going like an absolute treat since the Stradbroke. 'He worked enormous on Tuesday so all I'll say is that they'll want to be on their bikes (in the Tatt's Mile).'
Geek Tyrant
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Tyrant
Marvel's ARMOR WARS Reportedly May Be Dead, but There Are Possible Plot Details — GeekTyrant
Marvel's long gestating Armor Wars project might have finally flatlined. At least, that's what the latest industry chatter suggests. Originally revealed as a Disney+ series back in 2020, Armor Wars was later upgraded to a feature film in 2022 with Don Cheadle set to lead as James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, aka War Machine. Since then we haven't heard much, but now, according to new intel from scooper Alex Perez of The Cosmic Circus, it's looking like the project may never see the light of day. When asked if Armor Wars was definitively scrapped or just stalled, Perez responded: 'Many of the ideas for Armor Wars were transferred to other projects. The main one is VisionQuest with Ultron, but there are others, such as Wonder Man which will also delve into the DODC as they investigate Simon Williams. 'The one thing I think that won't be repurposed into another show, and which we may sadly miss, is Rhodey's arc from the events of Secret Invasion and how Rhodey copes with many of the events that have happened in the MCU since Raava replaced him.' While, the storylines intended for Armor Wars aren't disappearing, they're being reallocated to other projects that are still moving forward. Perez also shared some context on Rhodey's original arc, which might have offered a deeper, more personal chapter for the character: 'The original idea, as I understand it, was to have been replaced at some point between the events of Avengers: Endgame & The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. 'There were talks at one point about setting it as far back as Captain America: Civil War, but a massive online backlash against that idea led to the decision to set it later in the timeline. 'There was also the idea of exploring the legacy of Tony Stark and the ramifications the character had among his closest friends and family. So, we would have seen the return of Pepper Potts and Morgan Stark.' Armor Wars would have also brought back key emotional ties to Tony Stark, something many fans have been wanting to see more of post-Endgame. It's a shame we may never get to see that. So what happens now? VisionQuest is still in development, and Wonder Man is expected to debut later this year. Meanwhile, there's no official cancellation announcement for Armor Wars, so technically, it's still on the books. But, we'll just have to see how that all plays out. I would actually like to see this Armor Wars movie get made to see how Rhodey deals with the aftermath of the events of Secret Invasion, which was the most interesting part of the series.
News.com.au
17-06-2025
- Automotive
- News.com.au
Stradbroke Handicap runner-up Yellow Brick will be set for another attempt at Epsom Handicap
A bout of travel sickness aborted Yellow Brick 's shot at the Group 1 Epsom Handicap last year, but it is full steam ahead this time for the plucky Stradbroke Handicap runner-up. The Queensland training team of Maddy Sears and her father Tony have circled the Epsom at Randwick in October as the goal for Yellow Brick in the remainder of 2025. • PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet's team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW! An Epsom mission had been on the cards last year but plans changed when Yellow Brick spiked a temperature from travel sickness and had to be scratched from one of his lead-up runs. It totally altered the Sydney spring campaign for Yellow Brick who then targeted the $2m Five Diamonds in November where he finished a valiant third. Maddy Sears is convinced five-year-old Yellow Brick has never been going better and she was delighted when her opinion was franked when he turned in a huge run at $41 to finish Stradbroke runner-up behind War Machine last Saturday. After a short paddock break, it is onwards and upwards to a Sydney spring campaign which will culminate in the Epsom over the famous Randwick mile. War Machine WINS the G1 Stradbroke Handicap! ðŸ�† Tim Clark with a flawless performance in the saddle! — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) June 14, 2025 'He is so good over a mile and all the prominent form people we have spoken to say the Epsom would be an ideal race for him,' Maddy Sears said. 'He will have a couple of weeks off in a grassy paddock and then a couple of trials before we head to Sydney. 'He hasn't won an interstate race yet, but he has gone close, and we really want him to show what he can do on the big stage down south.' Yellow Brick finished three-quarters of a length off War Machine in the Stradbroke but on reflection, Maddy Sears believes he should have finished even closer. He not only suffered some interference from an incident that saw Rothfire's jockey Craig Williams suspended for 14 days, but he was also one of the few runners at Eagle Farm on Stradbroke day to make significant ground from near the back. 'He copped some interference and that probably put us a length or two back from where we really wanted to be in the run,' Sears said. 'But it really did feel like a win, Dad and I are part-owners of the horse and he owes us nothing. 'A lot of people knocked him from his prior run at Doomben, but he carried a big weight and he has never really loved Doomben. 'He seemed to get crucified on the back of one run and I thought his odds in the Stradbroke were ridiculous. 'He was the forgotten horse of the race for many people, but he certainly wasn't for us.' Yellow Brick earned $540,000 from his runner-up finish in the Stradbroke, taking his career prizemoney haul to almost $2.5m. Tony and Maddy Sears, who have moved from Toowoomba to the Gold Coast to train, are hunting their first Group 1 triumph and hope they can crack it in the Epsom.
News.com.au
16-06-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Brisbane trainer Rob Heathcote eyes Melbourne spring targets for grand campaigner Rothfire
Having stabled the Stradbroke Handicap winner War Machine for the Hayes team, Brisbane trainer Rob Heathcote hopes the three brothers can return the favour this spring when he likely takes his old gladiator Rothfire to Melbourne to hunt Group 1 glory. The seven-year-old gelding had a horrible lead-up to the $3m Stradbroke over 1400m at Eagle Farm last Saturday. Firstly, the 2020 JJ Atkins champion suffered a stone bruise just 10 days before Queensland's premier race and battled to even make the field. He was forced to run on a firm track – his least favourite surface – and then champion jockey James McDonald was sick during the week and was unable to ride Rothfire at 55.5kg, meaning Craig Williams received a late call-up. Heathcote watched and heard a few horses galloping on the firm track early in the morning on Stradbroke Day and said he immediately thought 'oh, I'm in trouble here'. He contemplated scratching his stable star but opted to push on, with Rothfire running seventh, just three lengths behind the Ben, Will and JD Hayes -trained favourite War Machine. In another slice of bad luck, Williams copped a two-week suspension for careless riding in the Straddie. War Machine WINS the G1 Stradbroke Handicap! ðŸ�† Tim Clark with a flawless performance in the saddle! — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) June 14, 2025 • 'The good news is that Rothfire has pulled up fine and will go to the paddock now,' Heathcote said. 'He's done his job. I mean his run was huge and unfortunately for him, the track was just too firm. 'He was charging to the line and then he just feels that track. As Craig said, he could feel him wanting to let down but he just couldn't. 'He'll have a break now and I'll have a very close study of available races. 'I'm not really sure what races I'll target but obviously there are plenty of Group 1 s and he races well at Moonee Valley. 'I've now got to look at races with a bit of give in the ground.' • 'Some huge offers': Studs clamour for Cool Archie as owner dreams of Everest Heathcote could possibly send Rothfire to the $750,000 Group 1 Moir Stakes (1000m) and then into the $2m Manikato Stakes (1200m), both at The Valley in September. 'I'd like him to have a two or three-run prep, either in Sydney or Melbourne,' said Heathcote, who won the 2013 Manikato with his superstar Buffering. 'The advantage with me going to Melbourne is that I have a good relationship with the Hayes boys. 'Their Stradbroke winner (War Machine) stayed with me. He was stabled not far from Rothfire. 'The boys were pretty happy, Ben (Hayes) was at my stable on Sunday morning.' Too good J-Mac! He lifts Sunshine In Paris to victory in the Doomben 10,000 ðŸ'° @mcacajamez @ANeashamRacing — SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) May 17, 2025 Heathcote believed that Rothfire would have 'gone close' to winning the Stradbroke if not for the untimely injury, which put the tough-as-nails gelding out of work for several days. 'He's been such a wonderful horse,' Heathcote said of the 'Thriller from Chinchilla', who fought back from a potentially career-ending sesamoid injury in 2020. 'If he didn't have that stone bruise he would've gone close (to winning the Stradbroke). 'I had even considered scratching Rothfire. But his run was huge and full of courage on a track too firm, plus he missed that bit of work.' Rothfire has shown his trademark grit in his three races this campaign - an impressive fourth in the Group 2 Victory Stakes, a tremendous runner-up finish to star mare Sunshine In Paris in the Doomben 10,000 major and finally his Stradbroke result when he had excuses.
NZ Herald
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
War Machine triumphs in Stradbroke, boosts Wallace family legacy
With a powerful and poignant performance in Saturday's The Star Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) at Eagle Farm, budding superstar War Machine added extra Group One sparkle to the legacies of two much-missed New Zealand industry figures. The triumph came less than a week after the sudden passing in Kentucky of internationally
