Ginnivan burst onto the scene with a brilliant front-running debut at Belmont back in August and he duplicated that win with another all-the-way victory in the Free Entry To Belmont Park Hcp (1000m) on Saturday.
“That first-up win was on a Soft 5, too,” trainer Jim Taylor recalled. “He’s a grows a leg on wet-tracks like a lot of the Universal Rulers. He’s fast out of the gates and that’s an asset so I told Brayden (Gaerth) to let the handle-bars down and make the favourite (Final Siren) carry his 60kg.”
Taylor has prepared 7 individual winners by Scenic Lodge sire Universal Ruler and trains Ginnivan for his wife Tina and his mother Lois in a partnership that includes long-time clients John and Jenny Maas.
“The plan was to get him rolling to ensure the weight difference counted,” Gaerth said. “He kicked off the home turn and gave them something to chase but then pricked his ears and began to wander about. He’s still a bit immature but the wet track helped and today was his day.”
Ginnivan was bred by Tina Taylor and is named after Hawthorn forward Jack Ginnivan who won the 2023 AFL Grand-Final with Collingwood before transferring to the Hawks this season. His dam Taken High (High Chaparral) has also foaled On The Full (Rogano) who was a Belmont winner this time last year for the same connections and her latest foal is a colt by Maschino.
Universal Ruler will stand privately at Scenic Lodge this year. He has sired the winners of 7 races this month and his former barn-mate Snippetson weighed in with a hat-trick of 3yo winners (Uukhai, Prospector’s Pick & Undercover Sniper) at Pinjarra on Thursday.
