Bennett: Warnie may head to paddock after Supernova win

Warnie bolted past heavy favourite Private Eye in The Supernova to pinch the victory on the line, claiming the million-dollar Notable race.

The four-year-old was relatively ignored in the market, jumping at $11 with Sportsbet, which was noticed by Warnie’s part-owner and founder of Bennett Racing, Nathan Bennett.

Bennett knew that the Bennett Racing syndication-owned gelding was primed for The Supernova, especially because of Warnie’s trainer Ciaron Maher being a “master”.

“He was sensational (in The Supernova),” Bennett told SENTrack & RSN’s Giddy Up.

“I thought his Cranbourne Cup run was full of merit, we wanted to try him over 1600m and I think he answered the question there that he can run it, he just had to carry a massive weight (60kg).

“Ciaron (Maher) is a master at dropping a horse back to the 1400m and kept him fresh. So, we were expecting him to run well.

“Form wise, he was certainly there abouts. I think the market missed him.”

See the replay of Warnie’s scintillating Supernova win below:

When asked about bay’s future, Bennett revealed that Warnie will probably be heading to the paddock, but will accept for the Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap (1400m) in June of 2026.

“Warnie might be going to the paddock and accept for a Stradbroke,” Bennett Racing’s founder revealed.

“He was fourth emergency this year and unfortunately just had no luck leading into it. Whereas now we know that Warnie would actually get in – his rating would be high enough.”

Bennett Racing’s other star horse Zou Sensation, who finished fourth in The Supernova, may be moving onto the Listed Kensington Stakes (1400m) on New Year’s Day, if trainers Leon & Troy Corstens & Will Larkin see fit.

“Zou Sensation, he nearly had the same (preparation), he’s just on another level that horse,” Bennett said.

“He’s kept improving the whole time and they’ve both been up for a long time as well, so it just shows how honest they are.

“I’ll have chat with Leon, Troy and Will about Zou Sensation and see if there is a nice race on New Year’s Day – the Kensington Stakes.

“It’ll just be whether they want to continue on.”