Craig Kerry
May 30, 2026 — 5:31pm
Matthew Smith just needed a win to turn a frustrating preparation with Portland into a good one.
Now the Warwick Farm trainer is looking to handicap races in the 2000-2400m range in the spring, and maybe one more run this campaign, with renewed confidence after the import scored a first Australian win on Saturday in the listed Lord Mayors Cup (2000m) at Rosehill.
Portland, left, wins the Lord Mayors Cup at Rosehill on Saturday. Getty Images The five-year-old Dubawi gelding, which was group 1 placed in France with Aidan O’Brien, had been a source of frustration for Smith after shin soreness delayed his Australian career.
After 15 months without a race, he then put together five promising runs with a best of third in the group 2 Neville Sellwood Stakes.
Before Saturday’s win, Smith believed Portland was not quite at his best and would be better in his second preparation, in the spring. He also believed Portland would go to another level on wet ground, which he found on Saturday.
As for having another start this preparation, Smith said: “He was great today. Let’s see how he pulls up.”
Winona Costin found the rail midfield on Portland from a draw in gate nine, and they made
Read More