All at sea … juveniles negotiate the right-hand turn at Ballarat on Sunday, the first time in more than six decades Victorian horses have raced clockwise. Photo: Lachlan Bence
MARK RILEY'S precocious filly I'm Too Sexy will forever be a trivia question irrespective of how the rest of her racing career progresses after she blew away her rivals to take out Magic Millions Clockwise Classic at Ballarat on Sunday.
Despite having won an unofficial trial at the track in the reverse direction, the daughter of Reaan, a half-sister to the promising colt Stralia which was sold to Hong Kong earlier this year for reportedly more than $1 million, won by three lengths at the attractive odds of $7.
She scored from the only previous winner in the field, $8.50 chance Ticket To Toorak which, having won a maiden at Ballarat the traditional way of going - anticlockwise - was bidding to make some history of his own as the only horse to have also won right-handed at the track in what was the first race run in 65 years in Victoria the ''Sydney way of going''.
Afterwards Riley quipped ''you like to give a good filly a good name, and she's a sexy bitch''.
The Mornington trainer was full of praise for jockey Luke Currie, riding his second winner of the day, saying that the way his horse began the race was crucial to her success.
''She was a bit slow out of the gates and that worried me. I said to Luke that the first 50 yards was crucial, that we really had to make her begin and be there, because when we walked the track we were worried about the hard run around the turn. We will see how she pulls up, but we know we have a very good filly.''
Would she chase the Gold Coast Magic Millions riches in January?
''We will stick on the plan, if she does everything right and pulls up well, yeah, why not,'' Riley said. ''We have pencilled in what we want to do but we haven't made full plans. But stage one is over, we have achieved what we wanted to do.''
Riley trained Stralia as well and knew what a good galloper he was, so when the chance came to buy his half-sister - before Stralia had run - he quickly put together a group of owners who bought her for what now looks like a cheap $30,000 at the Adelaide Millions sale.
Runner-up Ticket To Toorak, from the Matt Williams yard at Warrnambool, flew the flag for the Australian Thoroughbred Bloodstock company whose boss, Darren Dance, had been a driver for the idea of running the Clockwise Classic in the Sydney direction. He and Ballarat Turf Club chief executive Lachlan McKenzie had negotiated with sponsor Magic Millions to put up the money for the $200,000 race and pay the $60,000 costs for infrastructure changes required to run the 1000-metre dash the opposite way.
Meanwhile, champion Japanese filly Gentildonna has survived a protest to win the Japan Cup by a nose from Orfevre.
The pair came together in the final stages of the 2400m classic with a nose separating them on the line but after a stewards' inquiry, the filly was declared the winner.
Rulership, ridden by Australian Craig Williams, ran on well for third after coming out of the barriers last.
European Melbourne Cup runners Red Cadeaux, Jakkalberry and Mount Athos finished eighth, 11th and 12th respectively.
■ Tommy Berry booted home $16 outsider Kinnersley to win the Goulburn Cup for Gai Waterhouse yesterday.
with AAP
No comments:
Post a Comment