No black-type but a Melbourne Cup Day reward for the ultra-consistent Rich Enuff 3-year-old Wiggum in The Schweppervescence Plate (1000m) down the straight at Flemington.
Ridden by Damien Oliver for Travis Doudle, Wiggum tracked the early speed and when asked for the supreme effort, lengthened impressive to defeat Godolphin’s highly regarded Exceed And Excel colt Barber by one and a quarter lengths with the Starspangledbanner colt Perilous Fighter a neck back in third.
Never further back than second in his five starts, Wiggun advances his record to three wins and two seconds with earnings of $176,450.
“This is incredibly special,” an excited Travis Doudle said.
“He was a very big raw horse (as a yearling) and we liked him by Rich Enuff. That was a big tick for us. He had to grow into himself.
“You have to give those horses a chance. They might be only $30,000 but you have to take the time with them and build themselves up.
“We knew we had a very good Adelaide horse on our hands and I said to the owners let’s bring him away and see what we’re dealing with.
“I think today will help him mature a lot. I think we’ll be seeing him more on this side of the border than Adelaide.
“I thought I’d better grab him (Oliver) while I could, he’s ridden for me a little bit in the past so I took the opportunity and got him on both of mine today so I’m very happy.
“This is my second runner (during Cup week), we had one in the grey’s race last year and ran third, so we were happy with that, but we knew we had to go a bit better, and this guy’s done it today so over the moon for the owners they’ll have a pretty good night.”
“He’s a really nice horse; he’s not the most intelligent horse, he’s still piecing everything together, he’s pretty untapped, when he has got beaten he’s done a little bit wrong so he’s a nice horse in the making, I think we’ve got a pretty good future.”
“I just wanted to get him through the Spring, take a few softer options with him, just to help further his education because he’s not the brightest horse but he’s starting to piece it together and the G.O.A.T sitting on his back would’ve helped him out a hell of a lot.”
A $30,000 purchase for Travis Doudle Racing/Suman Hedge Bloodstock (FBAA) from the Milburn Creek draft at the 2022 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale, Wiggum is the second foal and first winner for the hard-knocking, stakes-placed, Shaft mare Erin's Element.
A 5-time winner, Erin's Element placed in the Group III Bow Mistress stakes and Listed TTC Newmarket.
From the family of David Moodie’s magnificent producer Razor Blade, Erin's Element had a Zousain filly sell to Moorillah Pastoral for $100,000 when offered by Kambula Stud at the Adelaide Yearling Sale this year. He was reoffered by Nolen Racing to the 2023 Magic Millions Gold Coast 2YOs In Training Sale, where Strike Thoroughbreds had the final say at $200,000.
Erin's Element foaled another Zousain colt on September 3.
Woodside Park Stud’s Rich Enuff has made a solid start to the season with his daughter Lempicka winning the Listed Alinghi Stakes at Caufield on October 21, while recent winners Wunderbar and Righteous Arion are lifting his profile in Hong Kong.
