BRC JUL 04 - LIFEBUOY SCORES COMFORTABLE VICTORY

By Matthew Grimson | Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Eagle Farm, July 4, 2009.
QTIS 3yo Handicap - 1400m. Time: 1-23.83.
Track - Dead 4. Rail - True.
1 Lifebuoy; 2 Frozone; 3 Little Mel.

The Terry McCarthy trained Lifebuoy came into the race as one of the serious contenders and he went home with the money after claiming his third win from his last four starts.

Forced to race wide without cover for much of the running, the three-year-old had to overcome some intimidation at the head of the straight. Once he had cleared that, he set out after the frontrunner Gundy Son with dogged determination. There wasn’t a flash of acceleration ... it was more a grinding effort which wore down Gundy Son and then left him with more than enough in hand to ward off the faster finishing Frozone. Little Mel, who had a quick three day back-up after racing at the Gold Coast on Wednesday, finished in third place ahead of the tiring Gundy Son.

This was Lifebuoy’s fifth run this prep, which kicked off with a third placing back in April at Grafton. He then scored successive wins at the Gold Coast (over 1300m in good going and over 1200m in heavy going) and he continued his good work when finishing fourth behind Battlefield over 1200m at Eagle Farm in his last run prior to this win. It has been a solid series of results which Lifebuoy will now take with him as he heads back to Grafton.

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Terry McCarthy: “Well, it was a hard race today and we virtually set him for this race. He is going to the Grafton Guineas from here. That was our plan. We were just hoping that he would race well today to get us there, so that’ll be our next plan. That’s where we will go from here.

“He’s stepped up. His run here the other day behind Battlefield was a really, really good run, you know ... a top run. He worked home. He had a tough run from a wide barrier. Like he got beaten by five lengths but he made a hell-of-a-lot of ground late, so it was a good run.

“It’s taken him a while to mature as a three-year-old but at this stage now, in this preparation, he’s raced really, really well. So, touch wood, everything is great with him.”

Jockey Scott Seamer: “He certainly finished well at Eagle Farm last time. That was the first ride I had on him and he impressed me quite well. Going to the 1400m helped. He is going to be a 1400m/mile horse. The other day was only six furlongs and he drew a 17, alley but he still finished the race off and finished fourth. I had the choice of a couple in this race today and I went for the right one, so it’s good.

“We were a little bit slow, but we mustered speed to sit fifth and I was three wide most of the way but with a horse like him it doesn’t really matter. You’ve really got to get into him to make him knuckle down and finish. Once you do he finishes off.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Lifebuoy): 5.50 steady.
Favourite (Little Mel): 3.00 out to 3.40. Finished third.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Damasqui, which was slow to begin, struck the heels of Lifebuoy shortly after the start and blundered. Frozone hung in when placed under pressure in the straight and near the 200m shifted in and made contact with the hind quarters of Rothera. Near the 350m Mystical Knight had to be steadied when tightened for room between Just Hilda and Lifebuoy which shifted in. Mystical Knight hung in under pressure in the straight. A post-race veterinary examination of True Tales failed to reveal any abnormalities.

Stewards questioned M. Cahill, rider of How Much My Love, in regard to the tactics employed today, in particular the reason for the gelding racing in a more rearward position than it had in its previous past starts. M. Cahill explained that the horse was coming back from 1600m and the blinkers had been removed as on previous occasions the horse had a tendency to over-race. Trainer D. Williams stated that previously whilst the horse had positioned closer, it had not been intended as the horse was racing in smaller fields and raced fiercely with the blinkers on. He added that the horse was up in class and was back in distance. The explanation was noted.

McCarthy