Spirit Of St Louis stamped himself as the horse of the summer with a stunning PETstock Ballarat Pacing Cup win, showing speed early and late to claim an unforgettable edition of the $110,000 classic.

Having arrived in Victoria a tick over a fortnight ago with a reputation as the number three in Belinda McCarthy’s powerful stable, the just-turned five-year-old has teamed with 20-year-old reinsman Jack Callaghan to add the Ballarat crown to the Shepparton and Bendigo cups won in previous weeks.

It's an amazing haul and the Group 1 win, the second of Callaghan’s young career, will have Spirit Of St Louis among the leading contenders in the February 5 Del-Re National A. G Hunter Cup, the ultimate prize in Victorian trots.

“It’s pretty cool,” Callaghan told TrotsVision. “I won a (Group 1) a couple of years ago but it was definitely not the prestige of this. This is what you dream of as a kid.

“I believed in the horse. He had to do it a bit different than I thought at the start but I knew how good he is and he proved it tonight.”

The Ballarat Cup was action packed throughout with Spirit Of St Louis holding off an early challenge from Max Delight before ceding the lead to favourite Lochinvar Art.

However, reinsman Chris Alford kicked up again on Max Delight and claimed and then gave the lead back to Lochinvar Art, which shuffled back Spirit Of St Louis.

And the moves kept coming.

As Max Delight crossed, Luke McCarthy surged forward on Expensive Ego to claim the top, with Lochinvar Art sliding in behind him and Spirit Of St Louis extracted into the breeze, as they set a blistering 77.9-second lead time, some six seconds quicker than in last year’s Cup.

Our Uncle Sam covered Spirit Of St Louis in the breeze while the third-wide line formed headed by Mach Da Vinci, and as the latter faded in the final 400 metres it set Spirit Of St Louis and Amazing Dream free from the running line.

The former would hold off Amazing Dream to win by a half-neck, with Lochinvar Art and Expensive Ego boxing on well to fill out the first four and continue their Hunter Cup build ups.

“It was definitely action packed that’s for sure,” Callaghan said. “I didn’t really know what to think. Then I got a bit of cover and luckily it all worked out.”


STAR MARE GOES TWO FROM TWO IN AURORA AUSTRALIS

Im Ready Jet put herself in the prime position to claim the inaugural Aurora Australis crown with a commanding victory in the EB Cochran Trotters Cup at Ballarat.

The Anton Golino-trained mare backed up her triumph in the Group 1 Maori Mile at Bendigo – the first race in the series - with success in the Group 2 feature at Bray Raceway.

The result has given her a maximum 16 points from the first two Aurora Australis races, with the V.L. Dullard Trotters Cup (January 29), Great Southern Star heats and Final (February 4), The Knight Pistol (February 12) and Australian Trotting Grand Prix (February 26) still to come.

Jason Lee was back aboard Im Ready Jet and she settled midfield from barrier nine before unleashing a three-wide run down the back straight the final time. She surged up to the Inter Dominion quinella of Maori Law and Majestic Man at the top of the straight, and when the latter galloped, it was left to just two to fight out the finish.

In the end, Im Ready Jet scored in a mile rate of 1:59.3min and by 2m over Maori Law, who ran a super race first-up from his mid-December ID21 triumph.

 

“She was awesome,” driver Jason Lee said.

“I haven’t hidden away from the fact for a long time now that I think she’s pretty special, so it’s nice to jump back on and see that she’s still heading in the right direction.

“Obviously she got beaten in the Sires, but they were a pretty good bunch and she sat parked. At her best I probably think she does handle that series.

“With all the big races coming up, she’s just slowly getting better.”

A $50,000 bonus goes to connections of the trotter who accumulates the most points (1st: 8, 2nd: 5, 3rd: 3, 4th: 2, 5th: 1) throughout the eight-race Aurora Australis series.


IM OFF N GONE PROVES JUST THAT

Im Off N Gone produced a special display to win at Tabcorp Park Melton last week, but never got her time in the spotlight on TrotsVision due to a power outage in the seconds after the race.

But Dean Braun’s imported mare showed that performance was no fluke with another brilliant victory in the opening race on Ballarat Pacing Cup night.

Chris Alford settled back from his barrier seven draw, but came with a searching run to sit outside leader Eva Mateo (Peter and Kerryn Manning) at the bell. Im Off N Gone then surged past the front-runner approaching the turn and never looked in danger on her way to a 6m triumph over runner-up Mona Mia (Kari Males/Michael Bellman).

“Dean has taken a little while to work her out, but she has just got fitter and fitter every run,” Alford said.

“He was confident tonight that we could drive her forward if needed and he was right. She was super.”

Alford said the Group 1 Alabar Bloodstock Ladyship Cup on February 5 looked a good target for the former Kiwi, who won six races in New Zealand before heading to Australia late last year.

Braun and Alford are looking for back-to-back wins in the Ladyship after they won it with Our Princess Tiffany in 2021.


NOTHING IN IT - LITERALLY - AT BALLARAT!

THEY have a big bout on the books tonight but David Moran and Jack Callaghan didn’t want to wait until the PETstock Ballarat Pacing Cup before going head-to-head.

The pair engaged in a terrific battle in the first heat of the Total Animal Supplies The Breakthrough Pace, when they dead heated.

Callaghan had the ascendancy throughout the race after leading from gate one with Ilikemebettor while Spring In His Step remained coiled up in the one-one for Moran, with Youaremy Sunshine in a familiar role in the breeze.

There was little respite throughout and off the final bend Spring In His Step ate into the leader's advantage but, come the line, the judges were unable to separate them.

“(Ilikemebettor) definitely put in a good performance tonight and I guess a dead heat is better than second,” Callaghan told TrotsVision.

“He’s still quite immature for a five-year-old, he hasn’t had a lot of racing so he’s taken a bit of time. He’s got plenty of ability, he just doesn’t always know how to use it.

“Tonight he kind of got out in front and then waited for them. When Sal’s (Moran) horse got outside him he kind of took off again, but I think he should just mature out of that with racing and be a nice horse going forward.”

With scratchings reducing the race to seven, all but Youaremy Sunshine will advance to the $50,000 final, which will take place next Saturday (January 29) at Tabcorp Park Melton as part of Night Two of the TAB Summer of Glory. The remainder of the field will be finalized by tonight’s second heat.


KIMBLE BE QUICK IN DOMINANT BREAKTHROUGH WIN

The inaugural staging of The Breakthrough Pace looks like it will certainly crown a very worthy first champion after the extraordinary first heat was followed by a dominant performance by a very good horse in the second.

Kimble was outstanding in blowing away a quality field for trainer-driver Matt Craven, gaining control of the race in the early stages and then clearing out for a handsome victory.

“It was a pleasing win tonight,” Craven told TrotsVision. “You have to try and see if he’s a genuine leader and I think, from what he’s done in the past, he probably can be in the right fields.

“He showed (that) tonight and the most pleasing part was he ran to the line really strong. At times he can switch off a little bit, but tonight he was really strong.”

There was plenty of zip early as Cherokee Joe and Arocknatthepark put on the early burn, requiring Craven to sit quiet on the Kimble until the pace came out before gliding to the top as Sweet Louise advanced to his outside.

A 27.8-second third quarter separated the leader from the field and while Sweet Louise boxed on well, the leader was in a class of his own in winning by 16 metres.

Idealsomemagic finished well to claim third with Radius, Bernie Winkle and Jilliby Fernando filling out the top six to advance to next week’s final.


JOIN THE STARTER TO KICK OFF BALLARAT CUP NIGHT


THE CHAIRMAN OF STEWARDS' WRAP

Brett Day, Harness Racing Victoria's Chairman of Stewards, joined TrotsVision host Nikkita Ross for Integrity Matters, a wrap of the night from the stewards' desk.