A rushed trip to Ballarat on Tuesday afternoon cemented Ciaron Maher's initial opinion that he had to take over banned trainer Darren Weir's Ballarat stables.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
The Warrnambool racing export, and training partner David Eustace, will now take over Forest Lodge effective immediately.
Maher said he was impressed by Weir's Miners Rest operation.
"When I looked at the facility on Tuesday, I just knew I had to have the stables," he said.
"Full credit to Darren Weir, they are magnificent. It's an incredible complex and is a great country environment for horses," he said.
Maher's resume contains numerous group one wins, including the 2016 Caulfield Cup with Jameka and four Warrnambool Grand Annual Steeplechases.
It's a stunning rise – Maher is now among Australia's top handful of trainers.
But, in 2011 Maher left Warrnambool with three horses, including flagship stayer Moudre, which had won the Queen's Cup the previous year at Flemington.
"I knew if I never went, on that day back in 2011, I would never make the trip," he said.
"I took the three horses. I'll never forget it.
“We arrived at Caulfield on the Monday. On the Tuesday morning we went out for track work and Moudre did a tendon."
Maher said he initially had just four boxes at Caulfield.
"I only had three horses and to be fair two weren't much good ... and Moudre was broken down. The cupboard was pretty bare," he said.
"We slowly built up our numbers and now there's more than 250 horses on the books. I'm lucky I've had loyal owners and great staff.
"We've got structures in place to accommodate the rising numbers.
"It's an exciting time, not only for me personally and David, but for all the staff and owners."
Maher and Eustace have already received a large number of Weir's former horses, including seven group one winners.
The group one winners formally trained by Weir are Extra Brut, Humidor, Gailo Chop, Sopressa, Voodoo Lad, Age Of Fire and Land Of Plenty.
Before acquiring Weir's horses, the duo had only one active group one winner in their stable, Aloisia.
Maher and Eustace now have facilities at Ballarat, Caulfield, Pakenham and a recent acquisition at Warwick Farm.
Racing Victoria confirmed on Thursday that stewards had approved Maher and Eustace to take over the stable.
It comes after Weir was banned from racing for four years at a Racing Appeals and Disciplinary Board hearing at Racing Victoria on Wednesday.
Have you signed up to The Standard's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in the south-west.
