Filthy Habits carries Fiore team’s dream into Perth Cup

PERTH – After conquering one of the toughest challenges in world equine sport, Brandon and Lucy Fiore are now chasing glory in their own backyard, with their sights set on Ascot for the A$1 million (S$860,000) Group 2 Perth Cup (2,400m) on Jan 1.

The husband-and-wife team, who finished third in the 2025 Mongol Derby – a brutal 1,000km test across Mongolia on semi-tame horses – have set Filthy Habits for the New Year’s Day feature, with Lucy in the saddle.

The six-year-old gelding by I’m All The Talk is part-owned by Lucy’s father, Perth Cup-winning trainer-turned-owner Justin Warwick, making the race even more special for the well-known racing family.

“It’s a big team effort and I’m pretty excited that Justin is a part of it. He’s had a lot of good luck in this race, so hopefully it rubs off on us,” said Brandon.

“To win a race like this would just be amazing. I’ve always liked the Cups and the staying races, so to knock off one like this would be a big goal achieved.”

Lucy and Warwick basked in Perth Cup glory in 2018 with Material Man, making Lucy only the second female jockey after Kyra Yuill – who won atop Western Jewel in 2011 – to ride the winner of the iconic Western Australian (WA) race.

Material Man was trained by Warwick, and that victory made them the first father-daughter duo to achieve the feat.

With no racing background before meeting his now wife, Brandon has quickly embraced the sport.

He has fallen in love with horses and is making his mark as a trainer, with his highlights to date headlined by the 2025 Albany Cup (2,100m) win on April 20 with his soon-to-be Perth Cup runner.

“Filthy Habits in the Albany Cup was my career highlight so far, it was awesome,” said Brandon.

“We had a long-term vision, and everything worked out perfectly. It was such an uninterrupted plan. It was really cool to win that for Justin, but it’d be even better to win this one.”

Filthy Habits enters the highlight race on the New Year’s Day programme at Ascot, holding the bottom weight of 53kg, something Brandon said will bode well for the stayer.

“The best thing about him is we don’t have to think too much about what we’re going to do, he just goes to the front and leads,” he said.

“It’s not really worrying about the other horses, we’ve just got to make sure we got him right and he’ll be at the front at some stage.

“He’ll give a good kick and it’ll be a good race nonetheless – he’ll give his best as he always does.”

Filthy Habits is priced at 16-1, while market-elect Apulia – an interstate raider from Victoria’s famed Hayes’ stable – sits at 11-10.

The son of Fiorente just won the Group 2 Ted Van Heemst Stakes (2,100m) on Dec 20.

Leading jockey William Pike is booked to ride the Ben, Will and J.D. Hayes-trained favourite as he chases a fifth victory in WA’s most coveted staying race. RACING WA