Racing
What the beaten brigade said: Eagle Farm
What the beaten jockeys had to say after the three Group 1 features at Eagle Farm.
EAGLE FARM
Group 1 - Eva Air Kingsford Smith Cup
(3yo+ WFA - 1300m)
Race Result:
1st: Joliestar (C Waller/J McDonald) - $2.4F
2nd: Zarastro (T Gollan/A Jones) - $17
3rd: Golden Mile (J Cummings/J Collett) - $26
Winning Time: 1:16.26 Last 600m: 35.34
Margins: Short-Head x Short ½ Head
Beaten jockey comments:
Mark Zahra (Giga Kick): "Joliestar had a bit more tactical speed than us early so we've come back and followed. We gave them a big start and probably would have liked him to finish off like the winner.
Jason Collett (Golden Mile): "Good performance. Positioned himself well from the gate and was still in the finish. Happy."
Angela Jones (Zarastro): "Super proud of him. So gutsy. He was there until the last stride so he couldn't have gone any bigger with eight weeks between runs."
Tommy Berry (Payline): "He gave himself a really good whack at the gates with one of his other legs and never felt great after that.
Jamie Mott (Libertad): "A little bit below his best today. Had a perfect run but just wasn't his best."
Ethan Brown (Rise At Dawn): "He found them a bit sharp off the bridle but he ran really well and he blew out a bit there late but up in trip is only going to suit him and I think he's come up really well this prep."
Kerrin McEvoy (Democracy Manifest): <No comment provided>
Craig Williams (Kimochi): "She was really good and solid. She gave me a really good run throughout. The leaders got a break and we really had to chase them down. Solid effort and she stuck to the task well."
Tim Clark (Benedetta): "She had a good run and it worked out beautifully as we hoped. Just felt that she lost a bit of confidence around the bend on shifty and she has done a bit of racing this preparation. Maybe she has come to the end of it."
Group 1 - Seven Queensland Oaks
(3yo F SW - 2200m)
Race Result:
1st: You Wahng (K Lees/T Berry) - $18
2nd: Pinito (J Cummings/J Collett) - $5.50
3rd: Benagil (G Thompson/M Zahra) - $7.00
Winning Time: 2:16.86 Last 600m: 37.41
Margins: Neck x ½L
Beaten jockey comments:
Mark Zahra (Benagil): "She was very stiff, she probably should have won. She just lacks gate speed which meant we ended up on the inside, so we had a few traffic issues before we got clear air."
Kerrin McEvoy (Philia): "I thought she ran well. She began okay but didn't muster as well as I would have liked, so we didn't take up as good a potion as I would've liked. That meant we had to do a bit of work and she was beaten on the corner, but she still stuck on to be beaten not far. So David has done a remarkable job with her."
James McDonald (Movin Out): "She was really good, she probably just found the 2200 metres a little bit too far for her."
Koby Jennings (Churchill's Choice): "She always hits that flat spot about half a mile out, and today it was a lot more obvious because it was her last run of the prep. But she's going to grow up and get stronger."
Tommy Berry (You Wahng): See above
Ethan Brown (Jenni's Meadow): "I thought it was a really gallant effort. She probably just over-travelled a fraction throughout, which took away from her finish. So in the circumstances, I thought she stuck on well."
Andrew Mallyon (Real Class): "We moved into the race really nicely before we got deleted and didn't get our chance."
Jason Collett (Pinito): "Very brave. She was definitely in for the fight and just missed out."
Cejay Graham (Pleasure Artist): "I think she's probably just looking for a break now."
Rachel King (Sweltering): "She jumped well to offset the bad gate and travelled well for the first half of the race, before hitting a flat spot. But she still finished off well."
Justin Huxtable (Poster Girl): No comment provided
Ryan Maloney (Amplify): "She began very ordinarily so I wasn't able to use the barrier to my advantage. In a muddling run race, she just got shuffled back too far and when the others started making their runs I had to duck back to the inside, which probably wasn't the place to be today. So I thought she ran quite well considering."
Angela Jones (Sun Worshipper): "It's just a shame that she had a bad gate and we had to settle at the back of the field, we had no chance from the position we were in."
Damien Thornton (Eclair Encore): "She was very disappointing today"
Tim Clark (Shangri La Impact): "It's only her first preparation and it probably all caught up with her today. She's probably come to the end of her prep."
Josh Parr (Ella Hazel): "I failed to execute the necessary procedures to win the race."
Jag Guthmann-Chester (Misting): "She probably didn't quite see out the trip in strong company today"
Group 1 - Ladbrokes Queensland Derby
(3yo SW - 2400m)
Race Result:
1st: Maison Louis (O'Shea & Charlton/R Maloney) - $21
2nd: King Of Thunder (O'Shea & Charlton/M Zahra) - $12
3rd: Chase Your Dreams (Team Hayes/R King) - $23
Winning Time: 2:31.33 Last 600m: 36.54
Margins: 1L x Neck
Beaten jockey comments:
Jamie Mott (Firm Agreement): "He had a fantastic run through the race, he probably just came to the end of his prep."
Tommy Berry (Imperialist): "He tried really hard today. There was a question over whether he stays the trip or not, and he doesn't. But it was the perfect opportunity to test him and he'll come back nicely next prep.
John Allen (Statuario): "Very disappointing. We never got into a good rhythm, and we were always just on one rein. We struggled from the 500-metre mark."
Mark Zahra (King Of Thunder): "He ran really well, I thought we had it won but the stablemate just beat him."
Jag Guthmann-Chester (Beau Dazzler): "Unfortunately he had a tough run, we were three wide punching the breeze the whole way, so probably didn't get the chance to stay the trip."
Kerrin McEvoy (Lavalier): "Great effort by James and the horse to travel up from two good runs in Adelaide. He stays and is very genuine, so he'll keep improving."
Jordan Childs (Politely Dun): "I was really proud of his efforts. We had to go back from the wide gate and he finished off as well as he could."
Michael Rodd (Deep Focus): "He ran enormous. We just copped a squeeze at the 400-metre mark, and that took our momentum away. But he picked himself back up and did a great job, especially for a horse having his first prep."
Josh Parr (Our Benefactor): "He's a lovely horse, he is just quite unsure of himself in certain situations. But next prep he'll be really nice."
Billy Egan (Scintillante): "It's time for him to go for a spell."
Craig Williams (Party Crasher): Scratched
Koby Jennings (Rogan): ""That run will help him grow up a lot. He had to come through the shifty part of the track, but he hit the line really well."
Jason Collett (Existential Bob): "the distance is probably a bit far at this level."
Tim Clark (Femminile): "She's probably come to the end of her prep."
James McDonald (Belle Detelle): "It was a really good race."
Rachel King (Chase Your Dreams): "She's absolutely flying this filly. If she'd drawn a gate or had a bit more luck, then she might have been tough to hold out but she couldn't be going any better."
Ethan Brown (The Muffin Man): "That was an end of prep run."
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