Matt Laurie savours Group 1 VRC Oaks victory with Yulong filly Treasurethe Moment

Matt Laurie says its a dream to win a Group 1 in Melbourne Cup Week after Treasurethe Moment claimed a comfortable win in the VRC Oaks.

Treasurethe Moment is exactly what Mornington trainer Matt Laurie could do as the favourite powered to victory in the Group 1 VRC Oaks (2500m) at Flemington on Thursday.

The Yulong-owned and bred daughter of Alabama Express looked the winner a long way from home as jockey Damian Lane ambled up at the 400m mark.

Once past the leader inside the last 300m, Treasurethe Moment held a comfortable margin on the runner-up Powers Of Opal, beaten 1¼ lengths.

Hurry Curry claimed third from Harlem Queen.

“I can’t really put it into words. I’m still shaking,” Laurie said.

“It was a painless watch. It is a dream to win a Group 1 in this week.”

It's one to savour 🤩

TREASURETHE MOMENT backs up her Wakeful Stakes victory on #DerbyDay with a Melbourne Cup Carnival double taking out the Crown Oaks.

🎥 @wwos | #OaksDay | #MelbCupCarnivalpic.twitter.com/pqqqgQD8ea

— Victoria Racing Club (@FlemingtonVRC) November 7, 2024

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Laurie, a Group 1 SA Derby and Oakleigh Plate winner previously, enjoyed the win with family, friends and Yulong connections.

“It is 20 years of work really trying to achieve something like this,” Laurie said.

“I’m just so grateful to my team at home and to team Yulong. They have supported me. This is a home-bred. To watch her progress to win a Group 1 is incredible.”

Treasurethe Moment won the Group 2 Wakeful Stakes comfortably last Saturday.

She became the 39th filly to complete the Wakeful-Oaks double.

The Wakeful winner or runner-up has won six of the past seven Oaks.

“She is obviously very talented,” Laurie said.

“She just aids herself in the way she just goes to sleep in the run.

“She conserves all her energy. She lets down. It was very painless.”

Treasurethe Moment and Damian Lane power away to win the VRC Oaks at Flemington. Picture: Pat Scala/Racing Photos via Getty Images

Laurie turned his attention to the Melbourne Cup carnival classic after Treasurethe Moment saluted at Sandown in September, the start of four-win streak culminating in the Oaks.

“It was very, very tough (win at Sandown). I didn’t really have too many questions about her at least reaching 2000m and she obviously answered that pretty heavily over the weekend,” Laurie said.

“We were just hoping we’d slot in and Damian (Lane) managed that perfectly and I started to get very hot and nervous before the race. But yeah, it was a painless watch really.”

Laurie welcomed the support from Yulong and in kind rewarded the breeding juggernaut with an extremely valuable double hit.

Treasurethe Moment is a Yulong home-bred and Alabama Express’s first Group 1 winner.

“It’s incredible. I mean, they’ve been such a positive thing for the industry and to have them in my corner is … I feel very privileged.”

Lane, who won the Oaks on Aristia in 2018, knew he was on the right filly on Saturday.

“Matt said to me before I rode her last start he thought that she was a really good horse in the making. She has proved them right. She is a bloody ripper,” Lane said.

“It is a tried and tested method (Wakeful-Oaks). I did the same on Aristia. I was confident that was the right form.

“A couple of other horses coming through, which you weren’t sure of – the Spring Champion and the Ethereal (form lines). I was as confident as you can be.”

Originally published as Matt Laurie savours Group 1 VRC Oaks victory with Yulong filly Treasurethe Moment