George Main Stakes Day Review: Horses to Follow
- Sep 18, 2016
- 6 min read
Can Hartnell challenge Winx in a Cox Plate? He was a dominant winner of the 2016 Hill Stakes.
Picture: Vince Caligiuri, Getty Images
There were some races run across the country on Saturday that could possibly shape how the rest of the Spring plays out. Hartnell showed he has gone to another level yet again, prompting people to pose the seemingly unthinkable question; could he be Winx's conqueror? Speaking of, Winx was her usual dominant self in winning the George Main Stakes, settling last but rounding the field up to win with a hell of a lot up her sleeve. Melbourne awaits her now! Jameka made a mess of the best field the Naturalism Stakes has seen for years and as a result now shares Caulfield Cup favouritism with Hartnell. She will be very hard to beat in the JRA Cup in the lead up to that race. Not many people would have had their eyes on Adelaide, but Raw Impulse looked like he is back to the type of form that saw him in the conversation as a potential Cups' horse during the Autumn. He didn't beat much in the Penang Trophy but he was very impressive in winning and will certainly be hard to beat in better races.
Caulfield
Run of the Day: Jameka
Next Start Winner: Serenley Discreet
Race 3 1400m 3YO Fillies
Time - 1:26.14
The winner of this race, Exocet, was certainly very impressive. Coming from a 1300m Geelong Maiden to this race looked a tough ask, especially given she drew the outside barrier. She got well back but once she was out in clear running she rattled home, running an 11.64s from the 400m-200m which was clearly the best in the race. She ran home in the fastest last 400m of the race and 2nd fastest last 200m and is definitely worth following as she continues to rise in trip.
Despite how impressive the winner was, Serenely Discreet was an absolute tragedy beaten. She settled a few pairs back on the fence and saw nothing but the backsides of the other runners for the duration of the straight. She had a lot to give and had she gotten a bit of luck I believe she would've won the race. I definitely want to be on her next time she goes around.
Race 4 1400m Mares BM90
Time - 1:26.35
Alaskan Rose was an impressive winner 1st up here after a stint in Sydney and Brisbane during the Winter carnival. She promised a lot when she first came on the scene but has struggled for consistency since. She's been hard to get a read on, as she has won three races, 2 at 1400m and 1 at 1300m but has also ran placings at Stakes level over 2000m. I'm not sure what her best trip is at the moment but her 1st up win here suggests she may have put it together now. After settling last she ran clearly the fastest last 600m (35.03s), 400m (22.89s) and 200m (11.67s) splits of the race. Stick with her as she moves through the grades.
Clemency and Amarela also closed well and can be winning races in similar grade in the coming weeks. Miss Gunpowder was good again but I am starting to lose patience with her. She would have to win or be very good next start if I'm going to stick with her. French Emotion ran well as she usually does, but I feel she has found her mark in this company.
Race 5 1600m 3YO Handicap
Time - 1:39.51
Harlow Gold was very good in winning this race and is definitely one to follow moving forward. She was the only filly in the field which makes her performance even more impressive. She got the right run but still ran the 2nd fastest last 600m (36.24s), 3rd fastest 400m (24.26s) and the fastest last 200m (12.24s). She may have had a fitness edge on her rivals here, but she should be very competitive in 3 year old fillies races moving deeper in to her prep.
There were two horses in this race who I was very impressed with. The first of those was Kaching. He settled a clear last early and circled the field rounding for home. He ended up running 3rd and jockey Nick Hall said he felt the horses condition gave out over the last 100m. His sectionals reflect that. He ran blistering times from the 600m-400m (11.83s) and from the 400m-200m (11.69s) before running a 12.40s last 200m (3rd fastest). He will no doubt take benefit from that run and be hard to beat as he steps out over a trip. The other one is the Ellerton & Zahra trained Odeon. He was caught 3 wide outside the leaders for the majority of the race and still kicked on the turn to look a winning chance 300m out. He tired a bit late, but his effort to run 5th beaten 3.3L was fantastic. Rocketeer was good also and will be one to keep an eye on.
Race 9 1400m Open Handicap
Time - 1:25.51
He's Our Rokki was completely dominant in this race and is in another class to the rest of these. I'd expect to see him be Group 1 competitive later in the Spring. He is the obvious one out of this race but one of the others that I really liked the run of was Plot The Course. I had a high opinion of this horse when he won his first couple of races but he has struggled to win since then. He was 1st up since April here and settled back worse than midfield before running home strongly, especially over the last 100m. He ran the 3rd fastest last 600m (35.66s) of the race and looks to have come back in good order. He is very capable of winning a race in this grade shortly.
Rosehill
Run of the Day: Hartnell
Next Start Winner: Fabrizio
Race 2 1600m BM85
Time - 1:34.55
This race was a genuine one act affair, with Fabrizio running them off their legs and then running away from them in the straight to win by 4L. This was his 3rd run of the preparation and he was out to the mile after two good efforts at his first two this time in over unsuitably short trips. He's now one 5 of 8 overall and as a son of High Chaparral he should be able to get over more ground. He ran 1:34.55 in this race, which is absolutely flying, especially when compared to the time Winx ran in the George Main over the same trip, which was 1:36.18. Look out for him as he steps out over more ground.
Race 7 1100m Group 2
Time - 1:03.25
Takedown was a very good winner of this race. He is a big boy and should be at his best when he gets out to 1400m, so to run over the top of some very good horses over 1100m is a sign of good things to come. Kaepernick was easily the best closer of the race, running home very strongly over the last 100m especially. He's shown that he can extend out to 1400m as well and should be followed. Hawkes' trained runners tend to get better 2nd and 3rd up as well so he looks in for a good prep.
The horse that caught my eye late in this race was Clearly Innocent. Greg Bennett's talented gelding was never going to be a legitimate winning chance over this distance against this calibre of horse, but connections would've been very pleased with the last 100/50m of his race here. He took a long time to get going but he really caught my eye crossing the line 3.2L away from the winner in 5th.
Race 8 1400m Open Handicap
Time - 1:22.73
I loved the run of Happy Clapper here. He was never going to be suited by staying at 1400m 2nd up and gave a lot of good horses plenty of weight in this race. He will be much better suited out to 1600m and beyond as he showed last prep when 2nd to Winx in the Doncaster and 3rd in the Queen Elizabeth. He took a long time to get in to gear and raced in limited room over the last 200m, but his last 50m were very pleasing. He crossed the line with plenty left in the tank and a race like the Epsom will suit him perfectly.
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