Luck with Right You Are

In recent years the cup had been dominated by internationally-bred horses, so the entry of Right You Are returned Australian-bred stayers to their rightful position in the history of the 163^rd race.

Bred at Humewood, Yass, by Steve and Jude Merriman, their son Matt and daughter-in-law Emma, Right You Are is a seven-year-old gelding by So You Think from the Redding mare Leica Ding.

Each parent ran in the Melbourne Cup: So You Think finished third in 2010, while Leica Ding finished 14^th in 2009.

It is a rare lineage as Steve Merriman pointed out.

"We like to breed middle distance horses, so we were very proud that Right You Are was in the cup," he said.

"There aren't many who can claim that pedigree."

The Merriman family have a long association with breeding and racing, with Steve's grandfather Ernest founding the dynasty more than 100 years ago when he kept a string of broodmares and registered the colours which Right You Are raced in.

"Grandad just loved racing," Mr Merriman said.

"He assisted in the founding of the Yass Picnic Race Club, and was president for many years. My father Owen followed his father breeding from a few mares."

The Merriman dynasty continues through Steve and Jude's son Matt and their grandson Hugh.

Mr Merriman purchased his first brood mare, Proud Pundit, when he was 21.

"I paid very little for her," he said. "She had won a maiden at Gilgandra but her mother had won the South African Oaks. Her first foal Regimental Honour won the Western Australian Derby in 1978 and eight metropolitan races."

He had more success with his next mare, Fashion Play.

"I only had one broodmare, and she produced a lot of winners like Wagga Wagga Gold Cup winner Sporting in 2000 and Sweepstakes and Patent who won 13 races for us, including a lot of country cups," he said.

"When she passed away we didn't have a broodmare and Matt, Jude and I went to the Inglis sales at Randwick in 2014."

While perusing the sale catalogue one particular mare stood out, Leica Ding.

"Matt found her," Steve Merriman said.

"We liked her breeding, we love New Zealand bloodlines as they are the most consistent for middle and long distance horses.

"She had the right bloodlines going back to Nassipour, a great sire of stayers through her sire Redding who won a Victorian Derby."

Leica Ding was in foal to So You Think, and she produced a filly, So You Leica, who successfully raced in the Merriman colours.

Mr Merriman said Leica Ding was a 'very workman like mare', and although not a big mare she was correct in so many ways.

"We also thought the world of So You Think as a racehorse and stallion and sent Leica Ding to him and she produced Right You Are," he said.

The Merriman's continue to support country races, but having success at the metropolitan racetracks is very important as it enhances the value of their broodmares.

"We are breeders so therefore we try to win metropolitan races and stakes races if we can," he said. "Right You Are has won two stakes races and his full sister So You Leica is in foal to Russian Camelot. Many of our horses were simply not good enough to run in the metropolitan races, so to have a horse like Right You Are has given us a lot of pleasure."

After the 2023 spring racing carnival, Right You Are has been retired to Humewood, Yass.

In an impressive racing career, from 27 starts, he had 10 wins including two stakes races, and eight placings.

He won his first start at Sandown, he won next at Werribee and then all of his wins have been on metropolitan tracks, including every racecourse in Melbourne.

Stakes wins include the Ladbrokes Victoria Gold Cup in 2023 at Sandown, and the Mornington Cup also in 2023.

"We are just bush horse breeders, we love breeding animals," Steve Merriman said.

"We love the racing, the best place to race in country NSW is Wagga Wagga. We've been very lucky with our horses, had such a good run. We've sold some, we kept some and the ones we kept have won us races - that's just luck."