Racing
Lindsay Park makes Debutant Statement
Sword Of State filly leads home Lindsay Park one-two in 2YO feature
Not content with winning Victoria's first two-year-old feature of the season, Lindsay Park further flexed its juvenile muscle in that state's second.
The Ben, Will and Jd Hayes training team provided the quinella of Wednesday's $200,000 Listed Debutant Stakes at Caulfield when Torture defeated Free Flying.
It followed Listed Maribyrnong Trial Stakes success with Per Incanto colt Eurocanto and Ben Hayes was thrilled to make an early impression with two well-bred fillies.
"It's nice to run one-two in the race and to get some Black Type with fillies is very important," Hayes said.
"I thought she won very well. She loomed into it, hit the front and did everything right today, so it's a big thrill for the whole team.
"Two-year-olds are something that we really enjoy doing and coming out and winning the first two races of the season is a big thrill."
Torture provided first-season stallion Sword Of State with the perfect start to his Australian career with her half-length win under in-form hoop Ethan Brown in the 1000-metre contest.
The only other runner to date for Sword Of State, a son of Snitzel who stands for NZ$20,000 at Cambridge Stud in New Zealand, has been State Of Valour, who was unplaced at his only start in New Zealand.
Snitzel is also the sire of $750,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast yearling Free Flying, who is out of the former Lindsay Park-trained Ennis Hill and is a half-sister to Learning To Fly.
Tornado Valley, who finished half-a-length behind Free Flying, was a $300,000 Magic Millions son of Too Darn Hot and made many blackbooks after getting into third placing despite a tardy start and being forced to change course a couple of times in the straight.
Lindsay Park paid NZ$250,000 for Torture, a half-sister to Group 1 Sangster Stakes winner Ruthless Dame, at this year's Karaka Yearling Sale and Hayes said she had surprised him and co-trainer brothers Will and JD with her precocity.
"She's a beautiful-looking horse, when you see her come in she's got so much more improvement to come, which is exciting," Hayes said.
"For her to come out with a Debutant probably wasn't, when we bought her, thinking we were going to do that, but she just kept improving, kept showing us that she could get there and her trial was good so we thought, why not?"
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