Brad Williamson and Majestic Man came to Australia late last month without a Group 1 victory to their names after a string of runner-up efforts in elite level races back home in New Zealand.
But just a few weeks later, they have two in the bag following an impressive victory in Saturday night’s prestigious TAB Australian Trotting Grand Prix.
The horse had been a dominant and track record-setting winner of the VL Dullard Trotters Cup at Tabcorp Park Melton on January 30 when able to find the lead, and Williamson managed to get the gelding to the front once again despite a back row draw.
A lightning early move saw the son of Majestic Son glide past early leader Magicool and assume the spot at the top of the field. From there, he controlled the tempo and was never headed on his way to a four-and-a-half metre success. Pink Galahs, for Matthew Craven, charged out of the running line to pick up second, while Wayne Potter-trained Monaro Mia produced a superb effort to grab third at big odds.
“He’s had some tougher runs in his last few runs on this wee trip over here. Although we copped a bad draw tonight, the way the race panned out after 200m or 300m, I couldn’t have been happier. And once he found the front, he was always going to be the one to beat.
“He’s always been a horse that you can put in the race when you like, which is a big asset to him. When you want to go, he is more than willing to.
“I couldn’t have scripted it better the way it worked out. After, I think, 300m we were in the one-one with no one outside us and plenty of room to negotiate when we wanted to.”
Williamson said it was a special success to win the $100,000 feature, a race his father Phil trained the winner of back in 2005 with Allegro Agitato.
“I remember watching that when I was a kid so it’s a big thrill to come over here and win,” he said.
“I couldn’t be happier. It’s the biggest race I’ve won tonight so it was a big thrill.”
Majestic Man, who is trained by Phil Williamson, has now won 17 races and more than $500,000 in prizemoney. He is set to compete in next weekend’s Group 1 Trotters Mile at Tabcorp Park Menangle before heading home to New Zealand.
WATCH MAJESTIC MAN WIN THE TAB AUSTRALIAN TROTTING GRAND PRIX
