The Inflictor blazes ahead

By Glenn Davis

It took hobby trainer Craig Cousins some time to realise the enormity of The Inflictor’s win in The Gateway in December.

Cousins, who drives trucks for a living, has a team of only two horses in work including The Inflictor who claimed the $300,000 race at Eagle Farm last year.

It was a dream come true for Cousins as The Inflictor’s victory earned the gelding a golden ticket into the Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm during the Queensland Racing Carnival in June.

“I hadn’t realised the enormity of the win until I sat back one day and realised it was a great achievement,” Cousins said.

“I’m chuffed. A lot of people congratulated me at the time and it’s just nice to see people like B J Smith and Barry Lockwood come up to thank me after the win.”

Cousins knows he’s only a small-time trainer and is an underdog in the racing game.

However, he also knows he now possesses a powerful hand for wannabe Stradbroke contenders as The Gateway winner has the right to negotiate to sell his spot in Queensland’s premier sprint.

A lot of water will flow under the bridge in the next six months before Cousins make his decision whether The Inflictor will take his place in the 2025 Stradbroke Handicap.

The Inflictor was unwanted by punters in The Gateway, starting at the juicy odds of $21.

With last season’s premier apprentice (and now senior jockey) Cejay Graham aboard, The Inflictor held his opposition at bay to down Victorian Blazing Harry, who stormed home from near last on the home turn.

"The Stradbroke is a fair way off but it's my intention to aim him to go third up into the Stradbroke,” Cousins said.

“I think he’s up to it but I’ll see how he is going around that time. I know Cejay thinks he’s definitely up to the Stradbroke. But I'm a realist and if he doesn't look like he will measure up to the grade then we can sell his Stradbroke slot to someone else.”

Cousins admits he has no idea what price he’d get if The Inflictor’s Stradbroke spot was sold.

“I haven’t a clue but there was some talk about $200,000. Who really knows?” he said.

Cousins has been training since 1996 and drives a truck delivering packs for cabinet makers for a living while dabbling in training. 

He has two horses in work, with the other being a half-sister by Worthy Cause to his former galloper Conquer The Stars. 

The Inflictor is owned in a syndicate managed by Kurt Turner, the eldest son of the late trainer and breeder Ken “Tubby” Turner. 

Tubby Turner was a larrikin in his era and trained many top horses including Lion Hunter, Just Awesome and Chinchilla Rose. 

It was Kurt Turner who asked Cousins to take on training The Inflictor after he inspected the son of Under The Louvre as a young horse.

“Kurt raced Conquer The Stars with me and he went up to Grandview Stud to look at The Inflictor and asked me if I’d train him,” Cousins said.

“He was a big bubbly gross colt but he was very good to handle. He was a very knowledgeable horse and the only thing he didn’t do was talk.

“Anyone who has ridden him calls him ‘The Dude’, as he’s so laid back and doesn’t get wound up but he knows he’s a racehorse now and he always tries.”

Cousins has been around horses for most of his life after starting off working for his father, Des, who was a popular Brisbane trainer.

“Dad was a trainer and I started off as his strapper,” Cousins said.

“Dad was training and driving a truck and he had a couple of properties when his financial planner said he needed to swap roles with me.

“He was retired then and got an early pay out so he went back to being my stable hand and I went from stable hand to trainer.”

Cousins has trained several smart gallopers over the years, but Solebid is the one that always springs to mind.

Solebid won nine of his 34 starts and earned more than $200,00 for the part-time trainer.

“Solebid was a good horse and won at 100-1 at Doomben in the last three-year-old race of his year,” Cousins said.

“There were about 30 nominations in for that race and he was down near the bottom. I thought he’d never get in the race but they split the race and the rest is history.”

Cousins has kept The Inflictor in work for most of his career.

“He doesn’t spell well and likes being around the stables with a mate,” he said.

“I’ve never been hard on him and he never raced as a two-year-old.

“He showed that he tries at his first start when he ran third to Heavenly Choices.

“Jack Bruce trained Heavenly Choices, which beat him and he was later sold overseas.”

The Inflictor had a week out on the water walker at Kolora Stud straight after his Gateway win.

Being a home-bred, The Inflictor was ineligible for the Magic Millions series but missed qualifying for the $1.5 million QTIS feature when he finished second to the Tony Gollan-trained Busting in a $125,000 Benchmark race at the Sunshine Coast on Boxing Day.

The winner of the Sunshine Coast race gained a wildcard entry for the Magic Millions QTIS race on January 11.

 “He pulled up in great order the day after The Gateway so I gave him a short break hoping to qualify him for the QTIS race by winning a wildcard,” Cousins said.

“Unfortunately, he just missed out but it was a good run. He got caught three deep without cover and was unlucky, but that’s racing.

“It was no fault of his rider as that’s how the race panned out.”

The Inflictor never raced as a two-year-old but showed promise from day one with Cousins.

Cousins gave The Inflictor his final run of his summer campaign in a Class Six at Eagle Farm in mid-January.

“I was going to spell him earlier but I put him on the water walker and decided to give him one more run before he goes for a break to prepare for the Stradbroke,” Cousins said.

The Inflictor fairytale could well continue if Cousins takes the leap of faith and continues his journey for the Stradbroke Handicap.

If not, Cousins could still make a windfall if he sells his Stradbroke spot.