Fiorente, the Unstoppable Horse that Wreaks Havoc on Bookmakers

Hall of Fame jockey Damien Oliver, trainer Gai Waterhouse and Fiorente make a powerful team which Aussie bookmakers fear.

Gamblers who like to bet on sports in Australia are looking forward to The Championship which will take place in Sydney this April, as the event promises to be full of surprises. What adds to the excitement is the participation of one very impressive horse named Fiorente.

The multiple champion has caused bookies to lose more than $25 million so far. Online and mobile betting company Paddy Power has even admitted that the horse was responsible for its recent slowdown in profits.

“Like a hurricane”

Winning the Australian Cup and the Peter Young Stakes horse races has made Fiorente a top favorite among Aussie bettors and this has started to cause bookies to lose serious amounts of money. With Oliver and Waterhouse adding their own professional contribution, the trio becomes even deadlier.

“I haven’t looked at the numbers but it was in the millions for the Cup,” said Michael Sullivan of Sportingbet. “It is like a force-10 hurricane. Punters love Gai, they love Ollie and they love a Melbourne Cup winner. And the damn thing keeps winning.”

Major competitions won by Fiorente:

• Princess of Wales’s Stakes (2012)
• Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes (2013)
• Melbourne Cup (2013)
• St George Stakes (2014)
• Australian Cup (2014)

Alan Eskander from Betstar explains how the success of the team is causing everyone to bet on them. “Everyone knows Gai and Oliver and they know the Melbourne Cup winner. So there are the punters who don’t do form on it and the ones that do do form are coming up with Fiorente as well.”

Now, the unstoppable Fiorente will be participating in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, where the prize will increase to AUS $4,000,000, as the event was already announced as the richest race of the Sydney Autumn Carnival.

A force of nature

Fiorente’s rapid success has made him famous among fans of the sport. The Thoroughbred racehorse was bred in Ireland then trained in England and Australia. It only took a few competitions in Europe to prove that he was a great racing horse and in 2012 he was already winning the grand prize at the Princess of Wales Stakes.

After he started to race in Australia, he added a few more titles to his portfolio, including the Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes and the Melbourne Cup in 2013. But what really made him famous was taking the titles on two very important events: the Pete Young Stakes and Australian Cup in 2014.

Originally trained by Sir Michael Stoute at Newmarket, Suffolk, Fiorente’s career took off when he started to compete in Australia. He is now in the capable hands of trainer Gai Waterhouse and jockey Damien Oliver, who helped him win his latest title at the Australian Cup on March 8.

One of the best

Trainer Gai Waterhouse admits that Fiorente is truly an exceptional horse. “He is the best middle distance, staying horse I have had. Pierro might still be the best horse I have had but they are very similar in their traits.”

The horse expert has big plans for his new favorite. “We will look at Ranvet or the BMW next, whatever is best to get him to the Queen Elizabeth, that’s the aim.”

Someone has already made a $7 million offer for Fiorente, since he’s already a stallion, but the owner is not ready to close the deal just yet. Some think he still has a long way to go, as his streak of good luck could stretch to Brisbane and Royal Ascot.

Waterhouse believes that, in order to go to Ascot, Fiorente needs one more run in Australia. The Doomben Cup, scheduled one month after the Queen Elizabeth race, might be the perfect opportunity for the trio to pave its way to success.

While Fiorente still has a long way to go to become an undefeated champion, things certainly seem to be heading that way. The success of this wonderful horse has brought him fame and value, as Aussie players just love him. So make sure you keep an eye out for the “hurricane”, because betting on horse races in Australia is about to get very interesting.