The Inevitable is gearing up to become Tasmania's superstar in Racing Victoria's All Star Mile. Photo: Sharon Chapman.
So, the trainer’s kids couldn’t pronounce its name and it became “The Vegetable.” One of the owner’s kids also struggled and came up with just “Neville.”
Doesn’t sound like much of a turf “All Star” right?
Well not in the shape of Anamoe or Golden Sixty at least, each of those stars chalking up their eight Group I on the weekend.
But The Inevitable, that’s Neville or The Vegetable, will be chasing the $5m All Star Mile at The Valley on March 18 and give Racing Victoria’s much hyped fan-based race the very story it needs.
Tassie-bred Richmond_FC player @JackRiewoldt08 is supporting local & voting for @Bruntonracing’s The Inevitable in The Sharp EIT All-Star Mile.
The betting market might have Alligator Blood the $3.5 race favorite (The Inevitable $21), but the fan’s market had him number 5 when voting went blank Saturday night and all will be revealed by RV tomorrow night, but no doubt that The Inevitable will be there.
The last time Tasmania made the mainland racing news was when their Racing Australia representative Robyn Whishaw quit this month, tipping a torrential bucket on the organisation on the way out, but The Inevitable will be doing it for Tassie for the very reason the All-Star Mile exists.
It’s as close to footy club parochialism as it gets. Why even Tassie’s jumping Jack Riewoldt, with a hint of taboo in his own words, switched camps from Mr Brightside to campaign for The Inevitable this voting season and it has worked.
“Maybe this a prequel if a Tassie team does come into the AFL,” Riewoldt said in his spruik."
“Tassie horses get a cult following, hopefully we can continue to build on that story.”
Think The Cleaner, the Mick Burles trained “people’s horse” from Longford, who conquered the countless Spirit OfTasmania crossings not to mention battling passive smoking via his trainer, but to eventually run in a Cox Plate.
I’m not sure if there were cult’s back in the 1880’s but try Malua and his remarkable race record that included an Oakleigh Plate, Newmarket, Australian Cup, Melbourne Cupand a Grand National Hurdle before going to stud. They built statues in Deloraine.
The Inevitable's cult following has likely catapulted him into the All-Star Mile field. Picture: Linda Higginson
Or even as recently as Mystic Journey, ironically the inaugural winner of the All-Star Mile, the $11,000 yearling, a filly beating giants like Hartnell and Alizee from Godolphin, Grunt and Happy Clapper when The Inevitable’s trainer Scott Brunton was there.
Indeed, he had Hellova Street just miss by one spot a place in that ASM field, only having to watch it run a close second in the preceding race.
“I got a massive kick out of Mystic Journey winning and showing that we can match it with the best with our horses,” Brunton said.
“This is fantastic for Tasmanian racing and it feel like we are representing all of Tassie, as well as my family, the families of all the owners, and just to achieve getting there I and experiencing it is something great and we are all looking forward to, there has been a huge buzz down here since the voting opened."
The Inevitable and Scott Brunton. Photo Supplied.
“It’s a great concept from Racing Victoria, and it just shows that any horse can be a champion for anyone, and this is ours.”
A social media campaign led by TasRacing with their media manager Peter Staples, got The Inevitable’s voting ball rolling and only the Mailbag Bloodstock crew with Keats have hammered a pitch as innovatively if not more, and they were Number 9 when voting went black.
“It’s what the race is all about,” said Brunton, “Getting into the spirit of it, it’s all good fun and a way for people to get involved in racing, especially all the Tasmanians.”
There was an invasion as a Tassie JackJumpers basketball game where 4000 flyers were placed on all stadium seats with QR code scanning to urge the locals to vote for The Inevitable.
It certainly hasn’t hurt that The Inevitable has found his way back from injury and almost oblivion with six straight wins (or eight of his last 10), including another stroll around in, ironically the Hellova Street Stakes last Wednesday, to upstage Launceston Cup Day at Winx like odds of $1.20.
The Inevitable will bring a massive and diverse crew with him to The Valley on All-Star Mile day, not that they haven’t already been on their own mystic journey along the way.
Bought for $90,000 at the 2017 Adelaide Magic Millions sales by David Brunton, Scott’s father, before close mate Richard “Bear” Robinson, who is involved in local footy and podcasting racing, started sharing him with his “We Deserve This” syndicate and others jumped in.
A picture was sent but in all the time since, they couldn’t stretch The Inevitable from his pony like (think Brawny Spirit) size of 14.3hh and weighing in at a scrawny 438kg or so.
“What we couldn’t see was the V8 motor under the bonnet,” said Brunton.
“Dad was always shopping in the bargain box but that was the first year of the Dundeels’ and we were keen on them, has been underbidder on six or seven, he was very athletic, and everything was in proportion, maybe there is less to look afterin a small horse, but $90k wasn’t cheap for us.
“Then the breeder (Alister McFarlane from Tori Park Stud) stayed in then it all came together with Bear’s crew and some good mates, Doug McCarthur was a tough man, but was very ill was gone too soon,” Brunton said.
“Then there were stable clients like Wayne and Adam Upton, he wasn’t easy to sell, but then dad bought Lady Lynette for $10k and she won over $1m, so he’s a great judge.”
The Inevitable was beaten on debut then came back at three winning his next five including a C S Hayes at Flemington before failing to Mystic Journey in the Australian Guineas, then bouncing back in the spring to win a Silver Eagle in Sydney before it all went pear shaped in the $7.5m Golden Eagle.
“It was a nightmare from hell, the float broke down on the side of the highway to the track, traffic whizzing past, you can only imagine what he was like when he got there, going around a $6.5 chance behind Kolding."
Then there was the debilitating Pods disease of the feet that required time off and rehabilitation, but Brunton’s Seventh Mile beach property and partner Teagen Keys home built jumps circuit (with car tyres), has rejuvenated The Inevitable to career best form heading into the All-Star mile.
EARLY DAYS: The Inevitable as a yearling at Adelaide Magic Millions 2017.
“He knows he is good; he can be a really prick of a horse to ride, can drop the rider, go around them and come back and try and jump over them, that’s true,” said Brunton.
“Or jump straight up 90 degrees in the air and land with his head between his legs, when we were filming here with Jack (Riewoldt) he took off 100mph, Jack shit himself and the horse cleared the six-foot gates in a hop, he can be like that.”
Brunton too has fought back from adversity, innuendo and police charges relating to drugs and firearms offences, the latter withdrawn, and no conviction recorded against the drug matters but the personal toll at the time was immense, but family and loyal clients remained stoically solid.
Which is why the trip to the All-Star mile is like a redemption of sorts and a real chance to represent Tassie in a $5m showpiece at The Valley.
He’s got both boats and aircraft booked (for the horse) and a cheer squad ready to lap up the occasion, which they will.
That’s inevitable – no matter the outcome with their little champ.
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