Racing
Busuttin name out for a winner
The Busuttin name is famous in the racing industry in both Australia and New Zealand.
Former Kiwi trainer Pat Busuttin is semi-retired and trains a small team of three horses at Deagon, on Brisbane's northside, while working part-time mentoring stable hands for Racing Queensland.
He moved to Deagon six years ago after a stellar career in New Zealand winning 46 Group 1's in four countries in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Macau.
He is best remembered by Queenslanders as the trainer of former top Kiwi stayer Castletown who won three Wellington Cups, an Auckland Cup and a New Zealand Derby all at Group 1 level.
His daughter Julie, also has found her niche in the racing game as an apprentice jockey to her father.
The 19-year-old has a 9.3 per cent winning strike rate with 16 wins and 50 placings from 172 rides.
She has an even better season strike rate of 11.3 per cent with eight wins and 11 placings from 71 rides.
Julie's career has taken her to many parts of country Queensland as well as a few trips to ride at Darwin in the Northern Territory.
While there's a long road ahead in Julie's career she and her father will return to the scene of her most memorable win at Gatton on Friday.
Gatton was the venue of Julie's maiden victory, aboard the late Pat Duff-trained Viking Valour in June, 2024.
While Julie has ridden many winners for other trainers, she's yet to ride one for her father who hopes for a breakthrough with Our Orator in the Benchmark 60 Handicap over 1400 metres.
"It was a memorable day when she rode her first winner for Pat Duff at Gatton," Pat Busuttin said.
"But it would be nice if she could ride one for me.
"She's had a few rides for me but has run heaps of seconds.
"I've joked to her I'm getting a new apprentice and she's joked back saying she's on the look-out for a new trainer."
Busuttin revealed his daughter has had to overcome a weight battle over the past six months.
"She had an over active thyroid and the treatment she had saw her weight shoot up to 59kgs," he said.
"It's taken a while but she's managed to get it under control and she can now ride 55kgs and it's on the way down."
Busuttin is confident of a strong first-up performance from Our Orator who hasn't started since finishing seventh in a 2400-metre Benchmark race at the Gold Coast in October last year.
"He always races well first-up and I'm expecting him to be very competitive," he said.
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