Conditioner Renex Burrell celebrated his first victory of the 2026 racing season on Saturday, July 18, when Shelly The Rocket captured the sixth event on the ten-race card, run in honour of top-notch mare Distinctly Native.
Guided by jockey Evertte Clunis, the five-year-old-and-up chestnut mare proved best in the non-winners-of-two event, contested over the five-furlong straight course.
Breaking cleanly from the advantageous post position 11, Clunis tracking comfortably off the pace. He allowed front-runners Speed On Wheels (Romane Gordon) and Prince Daniel (Raddesh Roman) to dictate the early fractions, which went in 24.4 and 49.4 seconds.
The real running began when the field merged onto the main track. With roughly a furlong and a half left to run, Clunis asked for an effort, and Shelly The Rocket shifted gears effortlessly. Sweeping past her rivals, she drew off to score by a commanding 6 ½ lengths, stopping the clock in 1:03.3. Speed On Wheels stayed on for second, ahead of Prince Daniel in third.
The victory marked a breakthrough for veteran trainer Burrell, who was saddling just his sixth runner of the year, with his previous best result being a single third-place finish. For Clunis, the win was his third from 61 mounts this season.
With this performance, Shelly The Rocket secured her second career victory from 21 lifetime starts.
