McDonald has been engaged to ride Tomodachi for former hoop Lance O’Sullivan and Wexford Stables partner Andrew Scott in the group1 Telegraph at Trentham on January 3.
The master jockey last rode in New Zealand almost two years ago, when he claimed the Karaka Millions 2YO and 3YO double on Velocious and Orchestral respectively.
More recently, before another Hong Kong stint, he signed off a productive Australian spring carnival on the final day of Melbourne Cup week when completing a group1 double on Via Sistina.
Having already claimed his fourth consecutive Cox Plate and his second on the Chris Waller-trained mare, he and the champion expat trainer combined for their 50th group1 together with Via Sistina in the Champions Stakes at Flemington.
McDonald’s Hong Kong stint ended on Saturday with a double at Sha Tin, taking his tally there for the season to date to 13 wins from 84 rides, his mounts’ combined earnings of $HK47million ($NZ10.4m) placing him second on that metric to resident champion Zac Purton.
Having been awarded his third world’s best jockey trophy at the start of the Longines Hong Kong International Meeting, McDonald combined with local champion Romantic Warrior for a record fourth consecutive victory in the group1 Hong Kong Cup.
A commitment to the world record stake-earner for his next Hong Kong start will prevent McDonald from attending the Karaka Millions meeting at Ellerslie, but his single-race cameo appearance at Trentham is bound to draw an audience befitting the occasion.
O’Sullivan has plenty of history with the Telegraph.
During O’Sullivan’s storied jockey career, encompassing 12 premierships and 62 group1 wins in his homeland as well as international majors for a career tally of 2479, the Telegraph stands like a beacon.
He rode the winner of the Trentham sprint a record six times and last January he joined his father Dave and brother Paul on the trainers’ honour roll with Grail Seeker. — LOVERACING.NZ News Desk
By Dennis Ryan
