Geoff Webster’s talented colts cut through the winter chill to register an Empire Vicbred Super Series double in the heats, with Misterfreeze and Wrappers Delight both first past the post.
On a big first night of the series at Bendigo, class came to the fore in the two-year-old colts and geldings’ heats with Webster’s well-bred Bannockburn boys joining talented Terang two-year-old Jilliby Kung Fu and Emma Stewart’s contender Our Little General as heat winners.
“(Wrappers Delight) is just a little bit better than (Misterfreeze),” was Webster’s typically frank assessment of his charges’ efforts. “(Misterfreeze) is just a real genuine racehorse, but (Wrappers Delight) has just a bit more class about him.”
More will be learned in the series semi-final night at Tabcorp Park Melton on June 24 and, all going well, the July 2 final. But for now Webster can rest assured he has a strong hand.
CLICK HERE FOR THE RESULTS AND REPLAYS FROM ALL THE NIGHT ONE HEATS
Wrappers Delight, by Bettors Delight out of Charlotte Church, led from the pole mark and controlled the race to win by a neck, narrowly holding off Emma Stewart’s eye-catching Solid As A Rock, who Gavin Lang drove a treat to cut the corner and almost pinch it from the back of the field.
“He’s a really nice little two-year-old,” Webster said of Wrappers Delight, who won for owners Dominic Martello and Douglas Webster. “He needed that run, he hasn’t run for a while. I was quite happy, he found the line quite good.
“He’s a typical Bettors Delight, he’s just lovely to have around the place. They’re good racehorses. The manners are fantastic. He’s a big horse for a Bettors, he’s not tall but he’s very thick. He should make a very nice horse later on as well.”
Stablemate Misterfreeze, by Alabar Farms’ Art Major out of Trammell, won his heat – the fourth and final – by a head from Bundy Playboy, who Webster trailed around the final bend and won the swoop down the straight ahead of Paddy Lee’s first starter and Kevin Brough’s Canada Bay, with leader and favourite Lochinvar Delight a 3m beaten fourth.
“They have all gone around in the mid 1:58s (mile rate) and that’s what (Misterfreeze) went, so considering (the weather) tonight it was good,” Webster said.
Misterfreeze won for owners Dominic Martello, Josh Nelms, Peter and Zilla O’Shea, and Harvey, Shelley, Jordan and Ashleigh Kaplan.
There were also some pretty chuffed owners in the Jilliby Kung Fu camp, with Terang mother-and-son Marg (trainer) and Jason (driver) Lee’s two-year-old producing the biggest win of the night, a 14m romp in the first colts and geldings heat.
By Empire Stallions’ Four Starzzz Shark out of Slip Slop Slap, Jason Lee put Jilliby Kung Fu into the race at the bell when taking the death seat and come the straight leader and favourite Starofsahara faded while Jilliby Kung Fu cleared out around the bend and that was all she wrote.
Winning for the Levarg Racing Group in a 1:57.3 mile rate, by some way the quickest of the heats, Jilliby Kung Fu won comfortably from Andy Gath’s second-placed Macchiato.
“He’s a lovely horse, he’s very versatile,” Lee said. “That’s what I love about him the most and he’ll be ready for Glen (Craven) when he’s ready to jump back on. He still hasn’t really grown into himself. As soon as he hits the front he just sort of backs off and waits for them a little bit, he did that again tonight. I think he will get better with time, but we will just have to wait and see. He is going good at the moment.”
Joining him in the winners’ circle was Our Little General, the winner of five of seven starts and favourite in the night’s third heat for trainer Emma Stewart and driver Gavin Lang.
Lang found cover for the terrific little sit-sprinter, who is by Mach Three out of Kabbalah Karen B, placing Our Little General in the box seat behind Amanda Turnbull’s leader Wardan Express. When the sprint lane opened Lang got to work and Our Little General hit the line a head in front of Shane Tritton’s Tingira Beach, who was super impressive having done a power of work.
“They were going pretty leisurely in the middle stages and a pretty good last half, so to make up three or four metres in the straight was a pretty good effort really,” Lang said of Our Little General.
“I was able to put him on the back of one and that’s probably the key to him. If he had have been left in the open maybe he might not have settled so good, but he is only a little guy this one and he is a great little racehorse and hence the reason he has such a good record.”
Michael Howard