THE KROPP RACING STABLES UPDATE

By Graham Potter | Friday, August 21, 2026

TRAINER WILLIAM KROPP

Fresh from a successful trip to Townsville on Saturday, August 8, where he came away with a second place finish in the Townsville Guineas with Sweet Pretender, trainer William Kropp quickly put two wins on the August stable honour roll when he returned to his home base, striking with Trusty Bandit in a BM 60 Handicap over 1900m at Kilcoy on August 10 … before sending out Scruffy to win a BM62 Handicap over 1400m at Dalby, a day later, on August 11.

That gave Kropp two winners, a feature race second place and one third place result in his first four starts for the month.

Trusty Bandit, who had won over the same track and distance two runs back, came into this latest Kilcoy assignment on the back of a strong showing in town where he finished third at the unwanted odds of $91behind the Annabel and Rob Archibald trained Cormac T and the very consistent Benzin, who was finishing in the first two places for the fourth successive time.

This time Trusty Bandit jumped as a $2 favourite, with nothing seriously supported to beat him, and the race panned out pretty much as the betting predicted with the Kropp trained runner coming home strongly under Brandon Lerena to score a decisive 2.26 length victory.

Lerena was happy to let the favourite race in midfield in the first half of the race, before he pushed Trusty Bandit up onto the heels of the frontrunners approaching the home turn.

All he needed from there was a bit of daylight, and, when that desired split in-between runners arrived at the top of the straight, Trusty Bandit needed no second asking, taking the gap and hitting the front within a matter of strides.

The closest of his rivals tried to cling on, but when punched out by Lerena, Trusty Bandit stretched clear to already have the race well within his keeping halfway up the home straight.

This was Trusty Bandit’s fourth career win.
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One day later, William Kropp was back in the winner’s enclosure … this time with the five-year-old mare Scruffy.
Scruffy was certainly due, and deserving of a change of fortune after finishing second in her two previous starts, both over the 1400m, the same distance over which she saluted at Dalby.

Scruffy duly started as the $2.15 favourite facing only four opponents and, again, it was Brandon Lerena who did the riding honours for the Kropp stable.

Lerena was in no rush, confidently allowing Scruffy the time he needed to settle into a comfortable rhythm as the Kropp runner raced in fourth place, some four lengths off the leader for the first 300m.

Scruffy moved a touch closer mid-race before Lerena got down to some serious work in the saddle approaching the home turn, scrubbing Scrufty along at that stage.

Scruffy cornered just over two lengths off the lead on straightening … as the widest runner on the track … and Lerena had to keep Scruffy at it in the final run home as the $3.80 second favourite Lambertina kicked strongly for home.

These two runners joined issue at the head of affairs with 180m left to run … and it was quite a battle and anyone’s race until Scruffy found that little bit extra required to gain a winning advantage over the final 20m to claim her fourth win by a 0.38 length margin.
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TRAINER MATT KROPP

Trainer Matt Kropp was never going to rest on his laurels after winning the $150 000 Townsville Cup with Leg Drive on August 8, and Whatjeudoin’ was his next winner in BM70 over 2170m at Ipswich on August 19 … arriving at the juicy odds of $15 under Cejay Graham.

The son of Nom Du Jeu had finished on the fringe of the placings in his last two starts … and the now forty-seven race veteran picked up his game here to upstage the Annabel and Rob Archibald trained second favourite I Am The Empire ($3) by 1.13 lengths.

Graham settled Whatjeudoin’ in midfield first time past the grandstand and the field then headed for the back straight at a moderate tempo with I Am The Empire in front, trying to dictate matters at a pace which would allow him to make every post a winning one.

Cejay Graham was having none of that though and, not only did she send Whatjeudoin’ around runners and up to join I Am The Empire in the back straight, but she then urged the Kropp trained runner past the early leader, taking up the running by a length at the start of the sweep to the home turn.

Whatjeudoin’ kept at it, sustaining his run and he still led on straightening, but the run home would be a test of his staying prowess and determination as I Am The Empire, hugging the rail, threatened to come back at Whatjeudoin’.

Coming through the 200m mark, these two runners were locked together. The moment that two-way contest was decided came 120m from home where Whatjeudoin’ edged ahead of I Am The Empire who had little left to offer … and Whatjeudoin’ had win number four on the board.

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