David Vandyke reveals his greatest thrill as the former trainer of retired champion Alligator Blood

Premier trainer Chris Waller announced last Wednesday that Alligator Blood had been retired due to heat detected in his leg, ending the career of the star gelding, who netted $9.3m in prizemoney for connections.

The son of All Too Hard started his career with Sunshine Coast trainer Vandyke, who had 10 wins with the star galloper, including the Magic Millions 3YO Guineas on the Gold Coast and the Group 1 Australian Guineas (1600m) at Flemington in 2020.

• PUNT LIKE A PRO: Become a Racenet iQ member and get expert tips – with fully transparent return on investment statistics – from Racenet’s team of professional punters at our Pro Tips section. SUBSCRIBE NOW!

But surprisingly, it was the race two weeks before the Australian Guineas – the Group 3 CS Hayes Stakes (1400m) at Flemington – that sticks out in Vandyke’s mind.

“I’ve won a few Group 1s but probably the highlight of my career was him beating Catalyst (in the CS Hayes Stakes), who at the time was a New Zealand champion three-year-old,” Vandyke said.

“They got into a slugging match down the Flemington straight and James McDonald said to me after the race, ‘I had you beat five times up the straight’. It looked like Catalyst would grab him and then he’d fight back again.

“I remember it was spitting with rain and I was standing at the 200m mark and I was just so pumped.

“I can’t even describe the feeling when he just wouldn’t let Catalyst pass him.

“I remember running along the front at Flemington and security said to me ‘don’t run’ and I was thinking ‘I don’t even care’. The adrenaline was flowing and I just had to use it.

“It was such an amazing performance. I must say that was a greater thrill than winning the Australian Guineas.”

• Resolution reached in King of the Mountain scratching drama

Former Brisbane jockeys’ premiership champion Ryan Maloney, who rode Alligator Blood up until October 2020, said that defeat “broke the heart” of Catalyst, who never won another race.

“Definitely the highlight for me was winning my first Group 1 (the 2020 Australian Guineas) at headquarters back home in Victoria where I first started,” Maloney said of Alligator Blood, who was purchased for just $55,000 from the Magic Millions sales.

“I’ve never had a horse be able to pick himself up from the canvas like him. It’s a huge thrill when they do that underneath you, especially a horse of that quality.

“A lot of people said he wouldn’t come back after his kissing spine surgery (in late 2020) but he certainly proved everyone wrong.

“There was never a dull moment with him. He gave us a lot of thrills and it was certainly a great time in my career.”

Another memorable Alligator Blood moment for Vandyke was far more stressful.

The 2020 Magic Millions 3YO Guineas race had to be delayed because a petrol tanker had rolled on the M1 highway, causing major disruptions for horses travelling to the Gold Coast.

Vandyke’s training assistant Emma Lehmann and stablehand Tara Pitt, a former Survivor contestant, were forced to navigate the backstreets to get their star to the venue for one of the biggest races of his then fledgling career.

• All Aged to set Antino on his way for Pride Of Jenni showdown

By the time Alligator Blood arrived on the track on a sweltering day, Vandyke then had to cool him down before the champ won the 3YO Guineas, although the title was later controversially stripped after a post-race swab revealed traces of prohibited substance altrenogest.

“It was extremely stressful,” Vandyke said of the drama leading up to the race.

“He was a short-priced favourite and this was the grand final we’d been leading up towards.

“It felt like the rug was getting pulled out from under us because of circumstances that we couldn’t control.

“It wasn’t a comfortable trip for him. It was a hot day and he certainly had sweat on him, like most horses that travelled during the day.

“I gave him a wash, the vets went over him and they were happy for him to start.”

After a falling out with the ownership group, namely Jeff and Robyn Simpson according to former major owner Allan Endresz, Vandyke cut ties with Alligator Blood, who was transferred to Billy Healey on the Sunshine Coast and later went to Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott’s stable where he won six Group 1 races in 2022 and 2023.

But Vandyke will always cherish the memories of his time with “Gator”.

“I’m just glad to be part of the journey. He’s a wonderful horse and for me to be a part of helping him finetune his craft, they are memories I’ll never forget,” he said.

“It’s probably the end of what could be a book. I think the whole Alligator Blood story was quite entertaining, from start to finish.

“He was physically and mentally tough. I remember often I’d be walking him in the enclosure in the lead-up to a race and he just had this energy and wellness.

“Sometimes I thought this horse could just go off and explode any minute. He was strong.

“I just had the greatest respect for the horse and his capabilities.

“At his best, he was an amazing horse.”

Originally published as David Vandyke reveals his greatest thrill as the former trainer of retired champion Alligator Blood