Melbourne businessman James Kennedy has exercised an option to retain a slot in the $15m The TAB Everest in October.
Kennedy confirmed to The Daily Telegraph he will continue as an Everest slot-holder this year and is now searching for a suitable sprinter to contest the world’s richest turf race.
The executive chairman of the Kennedy Luxury Group negotiated an agreement last year with slot-holder Greg Ingham’s GPI Racing to lease the Everest slot that included an option for another two years.
Everest slots are valued at $600,000 per annum and slot-holders can on-sell or lease their slot to the highest bidder.
Kennedy’s deal with GPI is understood to value the Everest slot at more than $800,000 each year.
There are already five confirmed starters for The Everest, run at Royal Randwick on October 15, with defending champion Nature Strip selected by slot-holder Chris Waller Racing alongside Masked Crusader (Max Whitby, Neil Werrett and Col Madden), Eduardo (Yulong), Lost And Running (TAB) and Mazu (Arrowfield and The Star).
Classique Legend, winner of the 2020 The Everest, is on the comeback trail and is likely to secure another start in the rich Randwick race as owner Bon Ho also has an Everest slot, leaving six starting positions vacant.
Kennedy’s initial foray into The Everest last year was with Embracer who ran 11th behind Nature Strip.
Embracer is resuming after a long spell in Saturday’s Group 2 $250,000 Missile Stakes (1200m) at Royal Randwick.
The Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained Embracer has looked particularly sharp in two recent runaway barrier trial wins and is rated at $7 in early Missile Stakes betting behind top mare and triple Group 1 winner Forbidden Love at $2.80.
Kennedy, the Melbourne-based owner who has an expanding private racing operation and is a long-time sponsor of the VRC Oaks, will take a keen interest in the result of the Missile Stakes as the likes of Forbidden Love and Count De Rupee are also on the Everest trail.
In The Congo, a stablemate of Embracer, is another Everest hopeful, and would have caught the eye of Kennedy and other Everest slot-holders with his stylish all-the-way barrier trial win at Randwick on Tuesday morning.
In The Congo, winner of the Group 1 Golden Rose last season, was ridden by Tim Clark in his 1½-length win over stablemates Converge and Dajraan.
The star-studded trial also including classy fillies Seven Veils (fourth), Queen Of The Ball (fifth) and Ojai (sixth), ATC Australian Derby runner-up Benaud was doing his best work late for seventh while Group 1 winner Fangirl was kept under a tight hold throughout, crossing the line in eighth position but only about three lengths behind In The Congo.
Originally published as James Kennedy to retain slot in The Everest this year
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