Struck by Grace gets it right
Struck by Grace, who was a disqualified winner on last over four furlongs (800m) straight, made no mistake on Saturday going around the bend after easily winning a Restricted Allowance call for the Winners Off Track Betting Parlour at five-and-a-half furlongs (1,100m).
Apprentice Christopher Mamdeen, getting the leg up once again got Struck by Grace out of her starting stall in good order as the dark bay mare settled behind leader Evasive Action (Trevor Simpson) running the half-mile (800m) turn.
Turning for home, Struck by Grace surrounded Evasive Action and went on to win comfortably by 2 ½ lengths in a time of 1:10.1. Evasive Action did well for second money ahead of Sweetie Girl (Jerome Innis) in third.
Mr Pantheon holds on
The consistent Mr Pantheon, in a front-running effort, just held on in a three-way tussle to the wire to win the Money Post Off Track Betting Parlour claiming ($550,000-$500,000) event over six-and-a-half furlongs (1,300m).
Ridden by apprentice Raddesh Roman, Mr Pantheon (Storm Craft – Senorita Sinki) held off late challenges from Blood Song (Romario Spencer) and Sunshine Cat (Anthony Thomas), winning by a short head with a nose separating the second and third-placed horses.
After a couple of strides leaving the starting gates, the Ryan Darby-conditioned Mr Pantheon, on the inside rails, surged to the lead ahead of Fort Knox (Dane Nelson).
After getting rid of Fort Knox at the top of the straight, Mr Pantheon was pursued by Sunshine Cat in deep stretch.
In the final stage of the race, Blood Song got into the mix but his late surge was not in time as Mr Pantheon held on. The final time for the event was 1:21.0.
Johnny Wilmot continues to enjoy good form
Trainer Johnny Wilmot continues to have a good 2019 racing season after notching his 16th winner for the year when his charge Cruising Motion won the fifth race — an Optional Claiming event with a $250,000 -$200,000 tag.
With Phillip Parchment riding, Cruising Motion won by 1 ½ lengths ahead of Fifty Cents (Kiaman McGregor) in a time of 1:10.4 for five-and-a-half furlongs (1,100m).
It was an even start for most runners when the gates opened with Super Mal (Roger Hewitt) held a slim lead over Cruising Motion, Samora (Trevor Simpson) and Fifty Cents.
Coming into the lane, Cruising Motion took over with Parchment pushing as hard as he could to get the better of Fifty Cents with Samora occupying the third slot.
Three horses claimed
Only three horses went through the claiming box on the 11-race programme
In the fifth race, trainer Junior Panton claimed winner Cruising Motion for himself from Johnny Wilmot, while Winchester McIntosh claimed Fifty Cents also for himself from Steven Todd. Both horses were claimed for a tag of $250,000 each.
Keisha Lawrence claimed Awesome Cat for owner Rossanna Brown from Collin Ferguson for $180,000 from the sixth race.
Treasure Train in time in battle of the ‘trains’
Four-year-old bay filly Treasure Train (Blue Pepsi Lodge – Silver Shadows), under a typical bustling ride from Dane Nelson, got up in time to nip Genuine Train (Samantha Fletcher) to win section two of the Joshua Morrison Memorial Cup. This cup race was run over seven-and-a-half furlongs (1,500m).
Alexa’s Star (Christopher Mamdeen) led from the first jump and with every stride taken, opened up on the field, looking to steal a march on rivals.
Turning for home with a healthy lead, Alexa’s Star gave way in the final furlong (200m) as Genuine Train took over but Treasure Train now in top gear was able to nip Genuine Train on the wire for the win. The front-running Alexa’s Star was third with a final time of 1:35.4 recorded by the clockers.
Treasure Train, trained by Lawrence Freemantle, was the only winner on the day for the red hot Nelson.
