Icebath enjoys frosty Flemington

Prolific money spinner Icebath broke through for her maiden Group 1 win at Flemington on Saturday after numerous placings at the elite level and also provided Craig Williams with his 70th G1 win when she was successful in the $1 million Empire Rose Stakes (1600m).

Williams though returned to the mounting yard without her and jogged in after the race to the plaudits of the crowd.

He explained that he had been forced to dismount after the race as ‘she’s a bit of a lady and she’s got her mannerisms and we saw that on display’.

Icebath had finished second twice at G1 level and also third three times. Amazingly it was also her first Group win.

One of those races was the Cantala Stakes at this meeting last year when she finished second.

The win also gave her Hawkesbury-based trainer Brad Widdup his first G1 win but he was at Rosehill to saddle up a couple of runners.

Assistant trainer Andre Rabbett said Icebath deserved to win a G1 and it was a fitting reward for the stable and the mare.

“She finally showed all the faith we had in her, she’s come through and got the maiden Group 1,” Rabbett said.

Although she finished ninth in The Invitation last week, they said it was always their plan to back her up seven days later.

“She does race well on a one-week back-up, she’s done that a couple of times before, and having that trip down here last year, this was always the plan,” he said.

“It took a lot of faith from Brad and the owners to back her up after her last run, we just had to draw a line through that run, we got her back home, there was nothing wrong with her.”

Williams told connections he thought he was riding the best horse in the race and he would ride her in that fashion.

The six-year-old mare was purchased by a syndicate headed by Australian Turf Club director David McGrath, who gifted a share to his father John, a prominent figure in Perth who has been a journalist and also a politician.

Williams bided his time near the fence and pushed Icebath ($11) home to defeat Mirra Vision ($61) by a long neck, with Excelida ($61) three-quarters of a length away third.