Jockey Sam Clipperton celebrated his most significant victory since returning from retirement by guiding Juja Kibo to triumph in the Group 2 Metropolitan at Randwick.
Clipperton had initially retired from riding just over a year after securing the 2023 Everest aboard Think About It, but later decided to return to the saddle late last year.
Despite The Metropolitan (2400m) now being a Group 2 event, Clipperton expressed his great pleasure at winning a prominent race during the Sydney spring carnival.
“That’s all right. Pretty sure the prizemoney is the same,” Clipperton quipped.
“All that aside, I’m delighted to get this horse home.
“I’ve been riding him throughout the ‘prep’. He has been building for a big performance. Lovely to be able to stay on these horses on these big days and get the job done.”
Juja Kibo had not tasted victory for more than a year, however, he had achieved a third placing in the same race last year and collected a number of stakes placings since.
Jo Gerard-Dubord, assistant to trainer Ciaron Maher, stated that Saturday’s Randwick race had been a planned objective, and they were optimistic following the six-year-old’s second-place finish in the Kingston Town Quality (2000m) at his previous start.
“It has been the plan all along to get him here third-up and try to have him peaking. After his last run two weeks ago we thought we were right on track,” Gerard-Dubord said.
“He still had plenty of improvement to come. He was very wintery that day and since then, he has really blossomed. He looks ten times better and that extra run under his belt, a bit of give in the track, was just ideal for him today. We had a good barrier and perfect ride from Sam.”
Gerard-Dubord further commented that Juja Kibo’s win had effectively set him on a path towards Victorian racing, with the Melbourne Cup being a significant aspiration.
“On the back of that, you have to look at Victoria. The St Leger is up here but Victoria is very enticing,” he said.
“We’d love to see where he fits in. If he was going to run in the Melbourne Cup, whether you have to go through Caulfield (Cup) or not we’ll have to see, but we’ll definitely have a look at that.
“The Melbourne Cup is probably the one we want to get to. We’ll see how he pulls up first and see the best way to get there.”
Juja Kibo ($5.50) settled near the pace and made his move in the straight to score by 1-1/2 lengths from Aethelwulf ($2.80 favourite), with The Euphrates ($4.20) holding on for third, a further two lengths behind.
Zac Lloyd, rider of Aethelwulf, noted that the race’s tempo did not suit his mount.
“They didn’t go quickly today. It was a sit and sprint,” Lloyd said.
“That suited the winner more than us. He has gone well again.”
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