No beach holiday for Mooloolaba and Holt combination

By Jordan Gerrans

Aidan Holt is expecting an improved second-up effort from 2024 Townsville Cup contender Mooloolaba when the gelding makes his Cluden Park return on Thursday afternoon.

It will be the first time Aidan rides the four-time North Queensland winner in a race as his weight is at a more manageable level.

Aidan’s wife Georgie prepares the former Paul Jenkins-trained galloper.

He was a revelation between March and July last year, not finishing outside the top two in seven starts, before starting as a favoured runner in the feature Townsville Cup where he finished seventh.

Mooloolaba returned for his first-up effort at Mackay last month where he led over 1300 metres before finishing a long last at the Ooralea track in Central Queensland.

Aidan regularly rides the gelding in his work and believes the son of Turn Me Loose will put in a much-improved effort second-up.

Mooloolaba will be one of two Holt runners – alongside Sweet Kisses – in the Benchmark 72 Handicap over 1400 metres.

“He has come back good and his first-up run at Mackay was just a fraction rushed to get there,” the hoop said.

“You could not fault his work leading up to that run but it was the first time we had travelled him away from Townsville and Mackay is always a track that we do not have much luck at.

“He was always going to need the run but I was a little disappointed with how he did go.

“He is an extremely good worker this horse, he just works good and he loves it and going fast.

“I am happy with how he has been since and he definitely looks better than what he did going into that run. We are quietly confident he will go well on Thursday.”

North Queensland has been hit with heavy rain in recent weeks with Cluden Park’s surface rated as a Soft 7 as of Wednesday morning.

The Holt barn will be big players on the program with 11 runners accepted across the eight events.

“We think we’ve got some good chances on Thursday but it’s the fitness issue that will be the big question,” trainer Georgie said.

“We’ve been working them consistently through it. The first few days of last week after the heavier rain were a bit quieter at the track, but since then we’ve been just rolling through them.

“They’ve been ticking over but unfortunately no gallops. That will be the big question mark. They’ll all be on the fresh side.”

Aidan has been booked for three of the team’s runners for Thursday, all of which have been allotted 59kg and above.

He has had a ‘stop-start’ career in the saddle over the last few years as he has battled with his weight.

Aidan was once regarded as a star apprentice in Brisbane and was described as one of the most gifted up-and-coming hoops in the state in his earlier days.

He rode 28 metro winners.

The father-of-two was down to as low as 58kg on a comfortable basis earlier this year.

He rode his first winner since July of 2022 at Cairns’ Cannon Park in late December of last year.

“I was pretty happy with how the weight was as it made life easier not needing to spend so much time in the spa and things like that,” he said.

“I am happy to ride our own horses when it suits.

“I like riding the non-TABs on a Saturday, I am more than happy to go there because it works best for us and our family.”

The Holt stable race the majority of their horses on the provincial circuit so Aidan riding more so at a country meeting on a Saturday works well as he is not needing to help Georgie saddle and parade their runners throughout the program.

Aidan’s other bookings for Thursday are Time To Prophet in the QTIS Three-Years-Old Handicap over 1000 metres and Decrypting Gold in the Ratings Band 0 - 55 Handicap over 1200 metres.

Time To Prophet may not face the starter but the heavyweight hoop believes Decrypting Gold will put in his all from a wide gate.

“He is going good – he is no world-beater but he is just dead set honest,” Aidan said of Decrypting Gold.

“There is nothing flash about how he works but he is just a racehorse.

“He tries 110 percent.

“He does the right things in the run and always puts himself there.”