Racing-mad Rodder leads the way in championing the sport in Melbourne

It would be hard to find anyone in Victoria more enthusiastic about the sport than Melbourne Racing Club’s racing and media executive Josh Rodder.

Rodder provided members of the international media with a guided tour behind the scenes at Caulfield on Saturday and his breadth of knowledge and passion for the sport born out of a career that has covered many aspects of racing shone through.

Rodder started out working at the stables at Caulfield, went into radio in his mid teens then had stints as a journalist at former Melbourne tabloid The Truth and as jockey manager for high-profile riders Zac Purton and Jim Cassidy.

For the last ten years he has worked for Melbourne Racing Club, but his link to racing does not end there, as his wife Talia – a one-time Israeli army lieutenant – is a former jockey.

Rodder said: “I was a pretty rebellious teenager but the horses settled me when I started out at Caulfield. I wasn’t into the early starts though so had to find something else in the industry and after a journey through radio, print and jockey management I’ve been based at the MRC for ten years.

“I love it. It’s a very different world to when I started out but every decision I take is with the horse and participants in mind. We’re going through a different phase here with the training centre leaving in 2023 but we’re planning lots of developments to make Caulfield the home of racing.”

Plenty of Love for star filly

The one man all connections wanted to see at Caulfield on Saturday was owners’ liaison Warren Moore, who greets winning connections after each race.

Moore has been a winning owner himself in Britain this year courtesy of the Jane Chapple-Hyam-trained Love So Deep, in whom he had a share along with MRC’s executive director of racing Jake Norton.

Listed Chalice Stakes scorer Love So Deep has been retired to stud following a recent fifth in the Jockey Club Oaks at Belmont Park that culminated a remarkable campaign – not bad for a filly who started the season off a mark of 64.

Moore said: “We paid 50,000gns for her between us as she had a nice pedigree being by Deep Impact and have enjoyed an amazing journey with her this year. I’ll never forget when she won her first race at Nottingham and we won three grand and a cheesecake. That’s unheard of in Australia!”

Ryan Moore set for Magic ride

There is likely to be another Moore in Melbourne this week as Ryan Moore is set to ride Magic Wand in the A$5,050,000 (£2.68m/€3.1m) Ladbrokes Cox Plate at Moonee Valley on Saturday.

Moore was out of luck on Ten Sovereigns in the Everest at Randwick on Saturday but Magic Wand has solid claims on the back of her Irish Champion Stakes second behind subsequent Champions Day heroine and stablemate Magical.

It is a surprise to see her as big as 16-1 for the Group 1 event, the market for which is headed by the 5-2 Japanese hope Lys Gracieux, with the field confirmed on Tuesday morning.

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