NIGHTLINE UNDERLINES HER OAKS CREDENTIALS

By Graham Potter | Saturday, May 9, 2026

The very smart Tony and Maddysen Sears trained filly Nightline claimed her fourth and most important win in only eight starts when taking out the Listed Gold Coast Bracelet over 1800m on May 9.

In the process the daughter of Redwood extended her perfect second-up record to having now won both times second-up, showing the kind of pleasing natural progression from one start to the next in a preparation that you would associate with a horse with the potential to go on to better things.

The Bracelet win came after a fine, fast finishing third place finish by Nightline in the Listed Princess Stakes in her first-up run. The Princess Stakes was contested over 1600m … a distance short of Nightline’s best. She was arriving with such momentum on that occasion, but the post came a few strides too soon to for her to be able to claim victory, but the way Nightline hit the line could not have been more encouraging.

With that run behind her, helping improve her race fitness, and with the distance going up to 1800m in The Bracelet, a big run was expected … and, in fact, was needed to confirm that Nightline was on track for her main target … the Group 1 Queensland Oaks, even though that prestigious Eagle Farm contest was still just under a month away.

That was why the Gold Coast result was an important win.

The bonus was how Nightline won the race and who she beat, because this was really a testing assignment, particularly from a wide barrier draw.

Nightline started as the $6.50 second favourite behind the New Zealand visitor, the Andrew Forsman trained Single Red, who topped the betting boards at $3.20 in her first start in Australia.

Single Red came into the race with very strong credentials, having won three of her six starts prior to The Bracelet. Most notable among her results though were two Group race placings … when second in the Group 2 Fillies Classic over 2100m and third in the Group 1 NZ Oaks over 2400m … runs which suggested that, if Single Red could bring that form to the shorter 1800m trip, she could be a tough nut to crack.

Adding a complication to Nightline’s task was the fact that she jumped from barrier number thirteen (out of fourteen) leaving her regular jockey Mark Du Plessis the task of negotiating a successful route from there.

With plenty of speed inside him, Du Plessis had little option, but to take Nightline back from her draw, switch across to the rail, slip forward along the inside and slot into a position in tenth place, racing nine lengths off the lead as the field went down the back stretch.

At that stage, Single Red was sitting in second spot, just outside the leader, and that gave the daughter of Vanbrugh the opportunity to get first run on Nightline when they came to the turn, and Single Red’s rider Craig Grylls took full advantage of that scenario, pushing Single Red to the front soon after straightening while Nightline, who had now switched off the rail, was still caught up in traffic with six lengths to make up.

As Grylls put his foot on the accelerator, Single Red began to open a gap between herself and the chasing pack … that is until Du Plessis guided Nightline into clear galloping room and although, now all of six wide and still with plenty of ground to make up and only 250m left to run, the Sears trained runner began to go through her gears in a formidable fashion.

Having been up with the speed all of the way and making that early move for home, Single Red was the one now being hunted down and, try as she might, she didn’t have an answer to the determined, late charge of Nightline, who gunned down the race favourite inside the final 20m to win going away by a 0.91 length margin, meaning that there was a close to a six length turnaround between these two runners over the final 250m.

Whichever way you look at it, this was a big win by Nightline in which she showed the courage and commitment required to extricate herself from a difficult position … the superb display of acceleration needed to make up a lot of ground when it was absolutely necessary to do so … and the strength and confidence to overcome a serious adversary … and she did all of that in a manner which appeared to confirm that the longer trip of the upcoming Group 1 Queensland Oaks should be well within her range.

There were boxes ticked all around!

“At the top of the straight there was a bit of a wall of horses, but the filly is very colt-like and she pushed her way out and I knew she was going to get into the clear. Dad (co-trainer Tony) and I know how good she is … she is very, very good … and I know the turn of foot she has. She is top tier,” said co-trainer Maddy Sears.

“I was a bit concerned with the barrier,” admitted co-trainer Tony Sears, “because that start’s not so great … but Mark (Du Plessis) rode her perfectly … probably nearly as good as when I was riding … no, seriously, it was a great ride. He didn’t panic. Before the race I said to him don’t try and change any tactics.

“This horse is very special. She has got gears that probably a lot of horses haven’t got.

“I will say one thing … I’ve got a good friend here and I got a lot of confidence from Lee Freedman. He is an absolute genius as a trainer and he has been telling me for weeks … he said, ‘that horse will win the Oaks’, so, when someone like him tells you that it makes you full of confidence.

“We think she is a very good stayer in the making.”

Nightline is a four-time winner from eight starts. She also has one second place and one third place result to her credit She has won from 1400m to 2100m (in The Eagle Way) and has won on both good and soft going … and, to date, has banked $294 100 in prize-money.

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