The words of the late Guy Walter, the 35-times Group 1 winning trainer who died suddenly in 2014, kept ringing in Brad Widdup’s ears.

“I have always remembered chatting with Guy one day when I was based with Godolphin as Assistant Trainer and asking him why he had decided to add stables at Goulburn to his Warwick Farm base.

“He said you needed 70 to 80 boxes if you wanted to be competitive in Sydney racing.” I used this advice to build my complex to do just that with 70 boxes right behind Hawkesbury race course with direct access to the track from our back gate.

Jedibeel, SCHWEPPES CHALLENGE STAKES March 2025

Widdup has just concluded another successful season, preparing 60 winners including Group 2 Challenge Stakes won by Jedibeel; averaging just over 58 per season in each of the 8 full seasons he has been training.

The “boy from Albury” has come a long way, although he wasn’t necessarily thinking of a permanent role in the racing industry toward the end of his school days, even though he grew up around horses. Widdup’s father Pat has been a long-time trainer in Albury, and the stables were in the backyard.

Young Brad Widdup 2005

“I saw first hand how tough things were for a country trainer, and I didn’t want to do that,” he recalled.

“First prizemoney back then was about $1100, and of course things have since changed dramatically. “Albury was the best place to grow up. School days were great and I liked sport.

“I really didn’t know what I wanted to do when I left school, and remember going to Narrandera to apply for a job in the railways.

“The recession had hit and there were about 300 blokes chasing the job, and you had to do an IQ job. Times were pretty hard.”

It took a phone call from Widdup’s brother Warren to lure him to Sydney – and it was the beginning of a long road which eventually led to him launching his own training career in the later part of the 2016-17 season.

“Warren rang one day toward the end of 1992 to say Sydney trainer Rod Craig (now retired) was taking a young horse north for the Ballina Bracelet en route to the Magic Millions, and needed someone to fill in at the stables for a couple of weeks,” Widdup said.

“I had nothing on my plate, and hopped on a float going to Sydney carrying a bag and a plastic bag. “I never went home to Albury.”

Widdup stayed at Eclipse Lodge with Craig and when the legendary BJ (Brian) Smith took over, where he got his first taste of Group 1 glory.

“Brian won the 1995 AJC Oaks with Circles Of Gold, who later became an outstanding broodmare, producing the likes of Elvstroem and Haradasun.

“I looked after Circles Of Gold and travelled interstate with her to the carnivals.

“BJ had different ideas and was always prepared to try something else. I watched a lot and picked up plenty from him a great mentor.”

Widdup spent three years with Smith and, when he scaled back his team, rejoined Craig when approached to be his foreman at 21 years of age.

“Rod didn’t have a big team, and one of them was an unraced chestnut by Integra and it was easy to quickly take a shine to him,” he said.

Intergaze – April 1999

His name was Intergaze, who won on debut at Rosehill Gardens, and went on to win another 11 races (eight of them Group 1s), and is still remembered for his giant-killing defeat of Octagonal in the champion’s farewell race (the 1997 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Royal Randwick).

Widdup saddled Intergaze as Craig’s daughter Nicole married the now Randwick trainer John Thompson that day.

He subsequently moved to Brisbane in 1999, with the opportunity to help run then Sydney trainer Bill Mitchell’s satellite stable.

The Brisbane stable had Group 1 success, capturing the 2000 Doomben Cup with three-year-old Akhenaton, who remarkably had won his Maiden at Newcastle only two months earlier.

When Bill Mitchell closed his Brisbane stable, Widdup went back to Sydney and joined Graeme Rogerson’s stable at Randwick where success with Polar Success in the Golden Slipper and stars Savabeel, Not A Single Doubt and Econsul under his care as foreman.

Polar Success, Golden Slipper 2003

Brad then joined fellow Randwick trainer Kevin Moses as foreman for four years, “We still have a great relationship with Kev an Jen, they are just like family to us, I would of trained in partnership with Kevin but at the time partnerships hadn’t been approved by Racing NSW and Crown Lodge had advertised for an Assistant to Peter so I threw my hat in the ring.” Brad went on to securing that converted position as Assistant Trainer to Peter Snowden at Warwick Farm’s Crown Lodge (then owned by Ingham Bloodstock and later that year sold to the Godolphin operation).

Widdup spent six and a half years with Snowden, “Peter like BJ are two of the best mentors a trainer can have, I am very fortunate to have learned under both”, Peter eventually departed Darley to start training as father and son in their own joint training business, this gave Brad an opportunity to work as Assistant to John Oshea when John took the role as head trainer and the business evolved into Godolphin.

During his time at Crown Lodge, Widdup was associated with more than 40 Group 1 winners and nearly a decade with Godolphin, opportunity came knocking to begin a new chapter in his racing life – branching out as a trainer in his own right at Hawkesbury.


Icebath, The Invitation  2021 



   
 Icebath, Group 1 Empire Rose Stakes 

 

With a Group 1 triumph now tucked away courtesy of Icebath in the Empire Rose Stakes & the $2m Invitation,  70 boxes to accommodate his burgeoning stable Widdup is understandably looking forward to kicking off another season. To compliment our stables and our vision for a new approach to training we are very fortunate to be developing a property less than ten minutes from our stables with the flexibility to spell and pretrain including a water walker and a high speed treadmill.

Brad Widdup Racing is a family affair, Brad and Milissa’s children– sons Cooper 21 and Hunter 17 and daughter Maddi 19, all play a part in the business, Cooper whilst studying Exercise and Sports Science at Uni rides work and runs the treadmill programs for our horses, Maddi works on the ground and loves it, she always has a favourite in the barn, youngest Hunter rides work before school daily and can often be seen at the races with Brad on a Saturday. Cooper and Hunter both look forward to training in partnership one day with their dad.

   
  

Cooper (top right) Hunter (bottom right)





Savvy Hallie, SINTORO SILVER SHADOW STAKES, August 2025



Nashville Jack, KEENELAND SEPTEMBER YEARLING SALE HANDICAP, July 2025

 

“This season we have Jedibeel aiming up to go to the next level and some very exciting three year olds Savvy Hallie, Nashville Jack and Tequisoda also a really nice crop of two-year-olds who, of course, are yet to begin their careers.

“Outstanding Group 1 horses such as Icebath are very hard find, but we’ll keep working hard to unearth them.

“You never know what is around the corner in this game!”



Cooper, Brad, Icebath, Hunter, Milissa & Maddison 2021