Group 1 winner ready to make history

Three-time Group 1-winning mare Maajida is looking to move closer to having a unique place in Vicbred Super Series history when she lines up at Ballarat on Thursday night.

Maajida goes into the series’ Vincent four-year-old heats attempting to become the first filly/mare to win Vicbred Super Series titles at two, three and four years of age.

Like the Emma Stewart-trained Maajida, six others have won two and three-year-old finals – Jasmarilla (1983 and 1984), Mazzini Magic (1988 and 1989), Kams Revenge (1990 and 1991), Jadah Rose (2005 and 2006), Rocknrolla (2009 and 2010) and Kualoa (2018 and 2019).

None have been able to complete the set though.

Steve Johnson, who bred Maajida with brothers Gary and Ian, and his late father Les, and races her under the family’s Atworthy Park banner, said it would be incredible if she was able to complete the VSS triple crown.

He said it was a special time for the family and would be a lot of emotion attached, with Les having died in May this year.

“For us, it would further unite us as a family,” Stephen said. “We’re a strong family anyway, but it would consolidate what we’re doing as breeders. Reinforce our philosophies in that we seem to have it right.”

Maajida faces the starter in the third of three heats for mares over 2200m at Bray Raceway.

She clashes with the Nathan Purdon-trained Spellbound, her major rival in the series.

The duo have met four times – all this season – with Spellbound finishing ahead of Maajida on three occasions.

And, as she so often has to do, Maajida has had to do it tough in each of those runs, being parked outside the leader.

Johnson has enormous admiration for the stamina of the daughter of Somebeachsomewhere.

“She was a bit of the small side as a yearling. Possibly one of the reasons she did not sell at the sales, but she’s developed into a magnificent mare. She’s so tough.”

Johnson said it was sometimes frustrating seeing what she had to do in races.

“In most of her wins she has to do all the bullocking work – the one that has to go into the death seat and make the race.”

That is where he expects her to land on Thursday night as well, with Maajida drawing six and Spellbound one.

“Sometimes that is to her detriment and others get the easy run and finish over the top of her. What she does do though is just keep grinding.

“That’s what makes her so special. She keeps giving, trying. She always gives her best.”

No matter what the outcome of the Vicbred Super Series is, Johnson already holds Maajida in the highest esteem for what she has done in winning 20 of 34 starts and earning $552,380 in stakes.

So much so he places her above 1995 Inter Dominion winner Golden Reign, which was bred and sold by his father.

“While I would have once said Golden Reign, Maajida is now number one for us. Definitely.”

He said just as Golden Reign had done for his father, Maajida had opened up opportunities for the family.

“Through what she’s done we’ve been able to afford better breeding stock and go to better stallions – a lot of things that we might otherwise not have been able to do financially.”

And if Maajida can go and win a third Vicbred Super Series final at Melton on New Year’s Eve?

“It’ll be incredible. A great achievement,” Johnson said. “She deserves it.”

In addition to the three VSS heats for mares at Ballarat, the 10-race program also features four heats for the Ultimate Sniper four-year-old entires and geldings class.

To view the fields for Ballarat on Thursday click here.

By David Brehaut for HRV