Brooke's unexpected victory Atouchmore than she hoped for

The winner of the 2018 Roma Cup is Atouchmore with jockey Brooke Richardson.

GRINNING WINNERS: Brooke Richardson with connections to the winning horse, Atouchmore. Picture: Jorja McDonnell

ABOUT 7000 punters filled every inch of space beside the track at Bassett Park on Saturday afternoon, anticipating a dramatic end to Roma's greatest horse race, the Royal on 99 Roma Cup.

Big names from across the country racing circuit graced the starting line-up, including recent Charleville Cup winner Les Tilley, Birdsville and Blackall Cup champ Adin Thompson and Emerald Cup winner Alisha Ross.

Roma Cup place winners Alisha Ross on Green Empire and Adin Thompson on Fab's Cowboy. Picture: Jorja McDonnell

A contingent from Toowoomba made up a large chunk of the competition, alongside regulars on the southwest roster, raising the bar significantly for Roma's big meet.

Early in the day Givus a Cuddle was the favourite, along with Deconstructed and Palace Tycoon, but the unpredictable nature of racing showed up the experts' tips in an exciting twist, with Atouchmore and Heroism each having a turn in the lead at the 400m and 800m marks respectively.

Ultimately, it was the outsiders which won the day, with Atouchmore and Toowoomba jockey Brooke Richardson taking out the cup at incredible odds.

Current number one apprentice jockey Alisha Ross was right behind them on Green Empire, followed by Fab's Cowby and Adin Thompson.

Brooke Richardson won the 2018 Royal on 99 Roma Cup on Atouchmore. Picture: Jorja McDonnell

After a quick smile for the camera, it was straight back to work for the Toowoomba-based team, led by trainer Matt Kropp.

"Most of the team had other commitments after the Cup, so the celebrations were held off until Sunday, when we enjoyed some Champagne out of the cups,” he said.

Overall, they were impressed by the performance of both horse and jockey.

"The way he [Atouchmore] handled the track was unexpected; he's been in reasonable form and was well over the odds going in to the race.

"We were up against the likes of Ben Currie's stables, who had three horses in the race and they were probably expected to go a lot better than what they did.

"But Atouchmore's form going in to the race was good, and the only uncertainty was whether he'd handle the sand track.

"We had four runners out there for their first go on this track and he was the only one that coped with the sand, plus a tricky gate” Mr Kropp said.

Runners in the Roma Cup were packed tightly at the start of the race. Picture: Jorja McDonnell

Handling the Roma track nicely, Brooke Richardson rode Atouchmore to a strong lead, ahead of the pack by two seconds when the pair crossed the line.

"Thankfully, Brooke was very positive [despite the uncertainty] and got him in to a nice forward position early, which was the crux of the horse either winning or not going so well,” he said.

Roma Turf Club president Brett Ashney said he was also glad the race ran smoothly.

"Atouchmore and Brooke Richardsom were outsiders going into this race. The chances were something like 15:1 - a number of people made a lot of money off their bets that day.

"All of the horses in the cup are good horses but not all of them were used to racing on a sand track, which throws up different challenges than a turf or synthetic field.

"Despite that, the overall racing was terrific with nothing untoward happening.

"It's the best we could have asked for,” he said.

The coveted trophies of the Roma Cup. Picture: Jorja McDonnell