Verry Elleegant simply sublime in Tancred Stakes at Rosehill
Chris Waller must be very tempted to give Verry Elleegant another crack at the foreign raiders in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes after a sublime performance at Rosehill Gardens.
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Chris Waller must be very tempted to give Verry Elleegant another crack at the foreign raiders in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes after a sublime performance at Rosehill Gardens yesterday.
Verry Elleegant made winning Group 1 races look ridiculously easy as she romped away with the $1.5 million Kia Tancred Stakes (2400m).
She put a margin of more than four lengths between herself and her immediate chases, Mustajeer and Avilius, who had little separating them on the line.
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This was similar to what Verry Elleegant did seven days earlier when she beat Avilius by more than five lengths in the Ranvet Stakes, only for Waller’s mare to be edged out by English stayer Addeybb.
Waller knows Addeybb will be there again for the $4 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) at Royal Randwick on April 11. So will Japan’s outstanding Danon Premium and Kiwi star, Te Akau Shark.
But Waller, who trained all-time great Winx to win a hat-trick of Queen Elizabeth Stakes in 2017-18-19, also realises Verry Elleegant is in the form of her life.
“Not sure,’’ Waller said when asked by Sky Thoroughbred Central’s Greg Radley if this was Verry Ellegant’s last run for the Sydney autumn carnival.
“If today’s race wasn’t among the circumstances we were in (coronavirus pandemic), I probably would have gone to the Queen Elizabeth. Who knows, it is tough times at the moment.”
TAB Fixed Odds price assessors didn’t waste any time slashing Verry Elleegant’s odds from $9 to $6 for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes. Addeybb remains favourite at $3.50.
If Verry Elleegant does go to Royal Randwick in two weeks, then she is very capable of winning another major to close her four-year-old season.
Verry Elleegant ($2.15 favourite) swept around the field on the final bend, accelerated effortlessly through the very wet track conditions and was eased down by James McDonald in the final 50m but still won by four-and-a-quarter lengths.
Mustajeer ($7) rallied late to grab second placing, edging out last year’s Tancred winner Avilius ($5.50) by a short half head.
McDonald summed up Verry Elleegant succinctly after the race: “She was a star today!”
The champion jockey said the race didn’t go to plan which only emphasised the mare’s absolute dominance of the Tancred field.
“I thought I would probably be outside the lead but she felt better coming from off the speed, to be honest,’’ McDonald said.
“But that’s how adaptable she is and how she has grown as a mare. Hopefully we are only going to reap the rewards now and what she has already done is just a bonus. What I felt today was just extraordinary.”
.@cwallerracing caught up with Greg Radley after his 109th G1 win following the Tancred Stakes with Verry Elleegant @atc_races pic.twitter.com/7X29b1Z691
— Sky Racing (@SkyRacingAU) March 28, 2020
McDonald said he had some concerns mid-race when Verry Elleegant was keen to go faster.
“I thought what is going on, is there something clipping my heels, then all of a sudden one went round her at 100 miles an hour and she thought it was ‘go-time’ then,’’ McDonald said.
“But she came back (to me) really nice, then showed her customary turn of foot and on that ground she just gets through it so well.”
Verry Elleegant appreciated getting out to 2400m yesterday for the first time since winning the ATC Australian Oaks nearly 12 months ago.
Waller has an elite stayer with Verry Elleegant and is already thinking long-term with plans to set the mare for the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup next spring.
“We haven’t had her over this distance very often but each time we have she has just been dominant,’’ Waller said.
“She has been everywhere but she is still getting better. She is only four and racing against the older horses basically but she is just a genuine athlete at a staying trip.
"What I felt today was just extraordinary" @mcacajamez after his winning ride aboard Verry Elleegant and his 45th Group 1 @cwallerracing @atc_races pic.twitter.com/YpcwcQg450
— Sky Racing (@SkyRacingAU) March 28, 2020
“The Caulfield Cup would be high on our radar and even a Melbourne Cup. Let’s hope we get weighted as well as some of the other horses from around the world and they keep giving the Australian horses a chance. She’ll be there and she’ll be one of them.”
Waller said the Tancred Stakes meeting showcased Verry Elleegant at her very best, and also shone a light on who well racing is managing through the worsening coronavirus pandemic.
“I think everybody here has been so responsible as have the stable staff that are doing a fantastic job,’’ he said.
“We’re all worried about our safety and health as well as the rest of Australia but we are showing we can put on a responsible show and keep everyone interested at home.”
SLIPPER CHAMP A PERFECT FIT FOR THE EVEREST
Golden Slipper winner Farnan won’t race again this season and the long-term aim will be to set the super colt for the $15 million The Everest in the spring.
Farnan is part-owned by Aquis Farm, which also holds an Everest slot, and its brilliant colt seems a natural fit for the world’s richest race on turf.
Trainer Adrian Bott said Farnan had gone for a spell, while Aquis managing director Shane McGrath confirmed The Everest was a long-term ambition.
“We have an Everest slot and Farnan is a big part of our thinking,’’ McGrath said. “The template is there for a three-year-old, with Yes Yes Yes winning last year, to target The Everest.
“The fact we have an Everest slot gives us that option and of our rising three-year-olds, Farnan would be the obvious one at the minute.
“Farnan did a sensational job as a two-year-old to win the Silver Slipper, Todman Stakes and the Golden Slipper. Only Pierro (2012) and Luskin Star (1977) have done that, so he is in lofty company.’’
Bott, who trains in partnership with Gai Waterhouse, said Farnan had come through the Golden Slipper well but the decision was made to resist the temptation to try to complete the juvenile triple crown by keeping the colt in training for the ATC Sires Produce Stakes and Champagne Stakes at Royal Randwick next month.
“Farnan pulled up great but we are sticking with our original plan that we had before the Golden Slipper and that is to spell the colt, ’’ Bott said.
“If Aquis wants to run Farnan in The Everest, he is the type of colt that is physically strong enough to take on the older sprinters as a three-year-old.
“Yes Yes Yes came out of the Todman Stakes and Golden Slipper to win The Everest last year, so there is no reason Farnan could not follow that path.
“There are the obvious three-year-old races in the spring like the Golden Rose and Coolmore Stud Stakes but if Aquis feel the prestige of The Everest outweighs the traditional path, then we will set him for that race.’’
TAB Fixed Odds prices assessors have elevated Farnan to the third line of betting at $15 for The Everest, run at Royal Randwick on October 17. Alligator Blood and Bivouac are the early favourites at $8.
Farnan raced clear to beat Away Game and Mamaragan by nearly two lengths in the Golden Slipper last Saturday but the minor placegetters are likely to race again during The Championships at Royal Randwick.
Annabel Neasham, who is in charge of the Sydney stables of trainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace, said Away Game had “pulled up very well’’ after the Golden Slipper and would be aimed at the Group 2 $1 million Percy Sykes Stakes (1200m) on April 11.
Mamaragan was having only his second race start when third in the Golden Slipper and trainer John Thompson believes his promising colt will be suited at 1400m for the Group 1 $1 million ATC Sires Produce Stakes on April 4.
Originally published as Verry Elleegant simply sublime in Tancred Stakes at Rosehill