Act Now further enhanced his standing as the leader of his class during tonight’s IRT Australia Breeders Crown heats, but a pair of fresh faced three-year-olds stepped forward as wildcards.
Beyond Delight and Mick Stanley’s Rock N Roll Doo, the only non-Emma Stewart trained winner to win one of the six heats at Bendigo, were eye-catching as the field of series hopefuls was reduced to 24 for the November 13 semi-finals.
In the opening colts and geldings' heat Rock N Roll Doo emerged from three back in the running line to mow down breeze horse Yambukian and score by a half-neck, a sixth win from his modest 13-start career.
A rapt Stanley told TrotsVision it was a promising performance from a horse who “still doesn’t know how to race”.
“Tonight’s the best he’s ever got out of the gate, around the last bend he was still hanging like a train, and he only straightened up late and wound them up,” Stanley said, having made ground amid a 27.1-second final quarter.
“With the sectionals they ran early he probably shouldn’t have run over the top of them really. He was able to use a trail in and use his speed and show a little bit of versatility. He may not be ready to win one of these series, but he’s definitely a horse to follow in the future.”
Yambukian and Sebs Choice filled the placings and advanced from the heat along with Bide Our Time, Ideal Dan, Tuppence, Gordons Bay and October Reign.
Also eye-catching on the night was Beyond Delight, a winner of six of his eight starts and much hyped in the lead-up by Stewart’s training partner Clayton Tonkin, who leases the three-year-old Bettors Delight colt from breeders Bruce and Vicki Edward.
The race itself was largely uneventful, with Beyond Delight bristling out to cross stablemate Major Moth and then blitzing home in a 26.3-second last quarter, winning by 1.4 metres from Major Moth with American Dealer 6.3 metres in arrears.
Damian Wilson fired in a protest post-race believing Beyond Delight inhibited his sprint lane attack, but stewards dismissed the challenge.
“He’s an exciting little horse and he pretty much did that all himself,” winning reinsman Greg Sugars told TrotsVision.
“Obviously the two main dangers were locked away behind me, so tactically to save it for a sprint up the straight was the ideal situation for us and there was no pressure in the race, so that’s how it unfolded.
“He had quite a bit left this little fella. He’s not fully wound up yet. It will be massive improvement with this horse with a couple of runs under his belt.
“It wasn’t until Major Moth got to his girth that he actually pinned his ears back and wanted to find the line again. He’s still got a little bit to learn, as far as race manners and tractability and that sort of thing, but he will improve greatly from this run and probably the next run as well.”
And it’s clear the camp has a huge opinion of him.
“(Clayton) hinted that he did think 12 months ago he was clearly the best one. Obviously others have developed and improved since, but he still thinks potentially this one could be every bit as good as any of them and possibly the best one,” he said.
“They’re hard, seasoned horses now, this bloke isn’t one. That’s probably why this series may not prove that to be the case just yet, we’ll have to wait and see what happens in the coming weeks of course.”
In addition to the top three Go Dancing, Dessie Gee, Kimble, Narutac Prince and Harryhoo also advanced to the heats.
But there’s a clear impediment in Rock N Roll Doo and Beyond Delight's path in the form of Act Now, with the Victoria Derby winner sublime in his heat when he sat outside Bettor Call Me and saluted by two metres, winning parked amid a 54.4-second last half.
“He’s definitely gone up a notch this time around,” his reinswoman Jodi Quinlan told TrotsVison. “I had to ask him for a little bit around the bend, more than I have done in his past few.
“We were humming down the back straight. His sectionals would have been super. Getting to the line he started to prick his ears and I just had to give him a flick with the rein because he thought he was all done. Bit arrogant really.”
She certainly wouldn’t swap him for any other, but it’s clear much is at stake as we build up to November 20’s finals night.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen when we get to semis and we hope to get through the finals, but it’s going to be a great race,” she said.
Bettor Call Me ran well to finish second while Ardens Ace, Belmont Royale, Drain The Swamp, Therockgod, Fightnfury and One Big Shew also advanced.
The Breeders Crown series continues with Sunday’s two-year-old pacing heats at Maryborough, with terrific coverage live and free on TrotsVision.com.au.
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