It is a former horse weapon owned by John Singleton that was last seen nearly three years ago in the 2021 Rosehill Guineas and was purchased from the larrikin businessman for just $6,000.
On Saturday, Elanora will complete a remarkable return to racing when he returns in the Listed Sunshine Coast Cup for new trainer Billy Healy and new owner Tom Headley, the Far North Queensland property tycoon and publican.
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Previously trained by Chris Waller, the Elanora team has taken to wearing Singleton's famous blue and white silks and was last seen finishing seventh behind Mo'unga in the 2021 Group 1 Rosehill Guineas.
Before that, Elanora, from one of racing's most successful horse families which includes More Joyous, Today Joy and Sunday Joy, had shown good potential and won four of his eight starts.
Since the last race he has had two knee surgeries and other problems, having undergone the Strawberry Hill Dispersal sale at Singleton last year where Sunshine Coast trainer Healy picked him up for $6,000.
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“(Tom) Headley was interested in this horse, but it wasn’t at the auction and I ended up buying it,” Healy said.
“A mutual friend approached me to see if I would like to sell it.
“I said Hedley could buy him from me for a little extra, or pay what I paid him, but then I would at least train him to get ready.
“That's how it happened.
“After the Rosehill Guineas, this horse came back and ran two trials.
“Singo used to own this horse, but he had undergone a series of knee surgeries in both legs.
“They thought he might never race again.”
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Elanora opened at $61 on TAB to win the Sunshine Coast Cup after a long layoff, and at some point in the last few years, he might have had those odds of just racing again.
It has now been confirmed that Elanora has a $41 chance of an extraordinary 1400m win.
Healy will be surprised if he can win on Saturday, having nominated the Gold Coast Stakes over 1800m in March as his primary target in his preparations for his comeback.
But he will not be surprised if the six-year-old – who was last seen racing as a three-year-old – gives a good account of himself after showing promise and enthusiasm for racing in two trials for Healey.
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“He definitely still wants to be a racehorse,” Healy said.
“He tested the other day and I thought he did really well, the rider sat quietly behind him, he was very good late and strong across the line.
“I wanted to run him first on a nice surface at home without too much weight.
“He's obviously a little different in training than most people given his injury history, but he seems to be reacting well to the beach and other things we're doing with him.
“He has a long way to go, Saturday is really just a starting point for him.
He added, “He will face a number of good horses on Saturday and I think he will continue to race well, but he will definitely improve during the race.”
Originally published as Ex-John Singleton Galloper The Elanora is ready to return to racing with new owner on the Sunshine Coast
