By The ANZ Bloodstock News Team
Listen
Group 1-winning mare Skybird (Exosphere) has been confirmed as Inglis’ representative in next month’s $20 million The Everest (Gr 1, 1200m) at Randwick.
Trained by Mitch Freedman, Skybird made her top-level breakthrough earlier this year when she unleashed a devastating turn of foot to win the Lightning Stakes (Gr 1, 1000m) at Flemington in February.
Injury ruled her out of the remainder of the autumn, but Skybird made her return in the Moir Stakes (Gr 1, 1000m) earlier this month, finishing within two lengths of the winner after striking trouble in running. She will next line up in Friday night’s Manikato Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) at The Valley before taking her place in The Everest on October 18.
Inglis Bloodstock CEO Sebastian Hutch said the mare was a standout choice for their slot.
“Since its inception, The Everest has been a captivating spectacle and the race in 2025 is shaping up as the most enthralling yet,” Hutch said.
“We work diligently through the year in consideration of prospective runners for our slot and Skybird catapulted to the forefront of our consideration with her win in the Lightning, which was nothing short of awesome.
“Mitch Freedman is a young trainer that the market has a lot of respect for and he has been very patient in his development of this filly, she is unexposed, progressive and shaping as a candidate to produce a career best at Randwick on Everest day.
“It’s been enjoyable to liaise with [managing owner] Michael [Scalzo] through the slot negotiations and the ownership experience of the Skybird owners is yet another fantastic promotion of our business and the industry as a whole, a $110,000 Inglis Classic Yearling that becomes a Group 1 winner of almost $1.3 million in prize-money and is now competing in the best sprint race in the world. It’s the stuff that dreams are made of.”
Skybird’s Everest shot represents a significant milestone for Freedman and his stable.
“She is an exceptional talent and it’s very exciting to take up the Inglis slot, given she was an Inglis purchase, and it really is a dream come true for all of the team at Mitch Freedman Racing,” the trainer said.
Skybird becomes the ninth confirmed starter for The Everest and the sixth Inglis graduate to secure a slot, joining Overpass (Vancouver), Joliestar (Zoustar), Lady Shenandoah (Snitzel), Private Harry (Harry Angel) and Angel Capital (Harry Angel). If successful, she would become the third-consecutive Inglis graduate to win the world’s richest turf race.