HULL SADDLES FIRST BLACK TYPE RUNNER IN GRAFTON’S RAMORNIE

GRAFTON wasn’t a track where Jake Hull counted amongst his 150 winners as a jockey.

The now Gosford trainer had only a handful of rides there, and clearly remembers one of them.

It was a 1600m Class 2 Handicap on July 11, 2018 – two races before Clarence River Jockey Club’s feature Ramornie Handicap (1200m) – and Hull, riding $7.50 chance Found Out for Newcastle trainer Jay Hopkins, hit the deck along with fellow jockeys Ben Looker and Josh Adams.

The incident occurred not far from the finish when Looker’s mount, the $3.80 favorite It’s Relative, broke down (fractured its near side humerus and was subsequently humanely euthanised), and Looker and Adams (Denver, $71) were caught up in the chaos and both also fell.

Seven years later Hull and Looker will combine as the former seeks to land the $200,000 Ramornie with his maiden black type runner Flying Crazy, a newcomer to his stable.

Hull left his Central Coast base around midway to head north, having targeted the feature Grafton sprint first-up with the six-year-old gelding, who was transferred from a major Sydney stable.

“I have had some luck previously with Equi-Com Syndications, who have now given me all their horses to train,” Hull said.

“Flying Crazy hasn’t started since the Scone carnival in May, and I decided to go back to basics with him, and take blinkers off after he raced in them only once when unplaced in the Listed Luskin Star Stakes (1300m) there.”

Coincidentally, the last of the gelding’s five career victories was in that same race at the 2022 Scone feature meeting.

“Flying Crazy’s best runs appear to be early in his preparation, and that’s why I chose to have a crack at the Ramornie.

“I would have preferred a softer draw, but he gets back anyway and the Ramornie is always run hard.

“We have done plenty of work with Flying Crazy and if he can find his best form, he is definitely up to figuring prominently, especially on the limit weight (54kg).”

Hull and Looker of course rode against each other, and it is no surprise the trainer has booked him for the Ramornie assignment.

Looker has ridden one third (11 from 32) of Hull’s winners since turning to training.

“We’re good mates, and Ben always rides my horses with a lot of confidence,” Hull said.

“I’m really pleased to have him on Flying Crazy tomorrow.”

Whilst Hull is saddling his first black type runner, his jockey knows the Grafton track like the back of his hand.

It is his most successful with 261 of his 1311 victories, and he had both his first ride (Aglazed) and first winner (Unfair) there on October 10, 2006.

Though yet to taste Ramornie success (he ran third on Fender in 2022), Looker captured the Listed Grafton Cup (2350m) in 2019 on New Zealander Sacred Day, a $13 chance.

Hull withdrew stablemate Red Spector from a Newcastle assignment today in favour of a Class 1 Handicap (1200m) at his home track on Saturday.

. Meanwhile Hawkesbury trainer Blake Ryan has confirmed his hat-trick seeker Lady Extreme as a definite Ramornie runner.

Alysha Collett will be an important part of the hat-trick bid as she partnered the mare in her recent Rosehill Gardens victories on May 25 (1100m) and June 28 (1200m).

“Lady Extreme has arrived safely in Grafton,” Ryan said today.

“She is well and a bit of rain would certainly help our chances.”

Story John Curtis, July 15, 2025