Unbeaten since her second in last year’s TAB Everest, Godolphin’s Street Boss (USA) mare Tempted turned the tables on Ka Ying Rising (NZ), ending his unbeaten run with victory in Saturday’s $20m TAB Everest (1200m) at Royal Randwick.
With many suggesting the Ciaron Maher trained mare had come back better this time in, having won the G2 Concorde Stakes and G2 Premiere Stakes at her past two starts, Tempted was considered the only real chance of ending Ka Ying Rising’s sprinting dominance.
Drawn ideally in barrier one, jockey Chad Schofield used that gate to his advantage, going forward to settle in fifth position behind race leader Savvy Hallie, while Ka Ying Rising was three or four wide in sixth position after jumping from the outside barrier of 11.
With Savvy Hallie ensuring a solid tempo, the Brad Widdup trained mare took the field into the home straight, and after the leader drifted slightly towards the inside rail, Schofield saw his opportunity and pounced.
In the fashion we have become accustomed of, the Godolphin bred and race mare charged to the lead, hitting the lead at the 200m mark.
While Ka Ying Rising put up a monumental effort to chase Tempted after his wide passage throughout, the Zac Purton ridden gelding went down by a narrow half neck margin.
Having finished fifth in last year’s race Chris Waller’s Zoustar mare came late to finish a neck away in third, with Matthew Smith’s Headwall running a gallant fourth after making his run down the outside with the favourite.
With her earnings surpassing $14.5m, highlighted by ten race victories (nine at stakes level), it’s worth noting that Tempted has only once finished outside the top three in her 15 starts to date.
WOW! ?? Last year's runner-up is this year's TAB Everest winner! Tempted holds off the world's best racehorse to claim victory! ?? @SchofieldChad @cmaherracing @godolphin @aus_turf_club https://t.co/h4n2a94uaE
— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) October 17, 2026
Trainer Ciaron Maher, whose been in outstanding form of late with a host of recent G1 successes, felt that Tempted would give this race one hell of a shake.
“I always had an air of confidence she would run her best race today,” enthused Maher. “You could see the way she was building through it.”
“Chad knew what he had under him and I felt barrier one was ideal. She had to be at her absolute best and she was.”
“This mare was there to be beaten but she did it! She went forward, made her own luck, and ‘God’, this is amazing. Earlier today, we were talking that we don’t really know how good she is.
“She hasn’t been beaten since and rectified it this year. It is really great, on an amazing day, I’m absolutely thrilled.”
“Tempted -Wow! Who knows what we could do with her but she has got better every preparation and I don’t think she is done yet.”
“I’m thrilled for Godolphin. A lot of horses don’t reach their full potential, but Godolphin has been very patient with Tempted. We could have taken her to Melbourne last spring but we didn’t.”
“We put her away for autumn and gave her a light autumn with a few of reaching her full potential. She is something special.”
With Schofield riding her slightly different to normal, the risk clearly paid off.
“First time I’ve really ridden her and asked her from the start.,” said Schofield. “Normally I just ride her to relax and trust her to be far too good late.”
“But it was a different race today. We had the world’s best sprinter, the world’s best horse. I had eyes for him, and I knew he wasn’t up there and I held my spot and kept him deep and I’m pretty sure that made Zac (Purton, Ka Ying Rising’s jockey) have to come back.”
“From there, I had the perfect trip. I came off from behind the two leaders, and I hit the front very early, a long way out. But she’s such a good horse, she's so brave and so game.”
While being positive wasn’t the plan as such, in hindsight it looked the only way to defeat the favourite.
“It wasn’t our plan. Ciaron just said, let her be. If she wants to be there, let her be there. He felt in this race last year she was a pair further back than she needed to be. I jumped, I gave her a squeeze, and like always, she was there for me and she delivered.
“She’s getting better, that’s all I’ll say. I rode her as a three-year-old and she came back so much stronger.
“She was amazing first-up, she was even better second-up. I reckon she went to a new level there today. She’s had three runs this prep and got better each time, why won’t she keep improving now as a four-year-old.”
The best of three winners from four to the races out of the G2-winning Exceed And Excel mare Calliope, a sister to G3 winner Zethus, a three-quarter sister to G3 winner Bacchanalia and Listed winner Aquitaine, the mare is also the dam of the dual G2 winner Kallos and the multiple stakes placed 3yo Zambales.
From the family of G1 VRC Oaks winner Bulla Borghese, Calliope foaled a filly to Anamoe in September 2025, before unfortunately slipping to the Champion son of Street Boss the following season.
One of 14 G1 winners, with more prizemoney than any other runner by her sire, Street Boss is standing this season at a fee of $66,000 (inc. GST) at Darley’s Northwood Park.
