Bettors who like to pick their winner by name should seriously consider Pride of Jenni for the Cox Plate today, with the champion mare carrying the legacy of a brave cancer fighter on her side.
In a wide open field, Pride of Jenni has become one of the favorites and owner Tony Ottobre will have tears in his eyes wherever she ends up.
Because Pride of Jenni isn’t just a random name. Jenni is the name of Tony’s daughter, who died of brain cancer in 2015 at the age of 30.
She had been given permission by the doctors to interrupt the experimental treatment to marry the love of her life, Luke. But the cancer grew larger and more aggressive, eventually claiming her life.
Still, she fought three years longer than her original prognosis.
Since then, Ottobre has kept her legacy alive with his racehorses and Pride of Jenni is the favorite.
Jennifer with her parents Tony and Lynn on her wedding day prior to her tragic death from cancer in 2015
Jennifer loved her horses and her legacy lives on in her father’s stable, with many of the horses named after her
The seven-year-old mare is trained by champion rider Ciaron Maher and has established herself as one of Australia’s top racehorses, recently being crowned Australian Racehorse of the Year after a series of impressive performances.
Her standout victory in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes demonstrated her incredible stamina, leading by a remarkable margin early on and keeping competitors at bay in dominant fashion.
Ranked among the best horses in the world in 2024, Pride of Jenni has shown strong form and consistency across multiple Group 1 events, although she narrowly missed out on victory in the Makybe Diva Stakes.
Her recent performances and international ranking make her a notable contender for the Cox Plate and if she shows even a little of the courage that Jenni showed, the mare is in for a big day.
“She never said to me, ‘Why me, Dad?’ said Ottobre The era through a veil of tears.
‘She had the right to, but she never did it. She was a very brave girl to the end.”
Tony Ottobre will be emotional no matter how Pride or Jenni fares today in Mooney Valley
Pride of Jenni enters the Cox Plate on a wave of top form and is one of the leading contenders to take the $5 million purse
Ottobre bought Jenni a racehorse in 2011 when she was first diagnosed and has since created a racing empire of more than 30 horses with a variation on the name Jenni and more than 70 animals on his property.
He admits he’s out of options for naming them.
“We got bigger and bigger and added more horses, and the more fun we had with the horses, the more comfort they gave us and the more we bought,” he said.
Pride of Jenni will line up from barrier 7 in the Cox Plate in Jenni’s favorite colors – sky blue and purple – and is a hot favorite to add to her $10 million prize fund won to date.
And Ottobre knows his daughter is the reason his horse is there, with her riding shotgun in mind.
“As far as I’m concerned, the real Jenni put us there. One hundred percent.”
