EF SEPT 1 - PLATINUM STATE TOUGHS IT OUT AND PREVAILS IN PRESSURISED FINISH.

By Graham Potter | Sunday, September 2, 2012

Eagle Farm, September 1, 2012.
Track - Good 3, Rail out 1m.
QTIS Three-year-old Handicap - 1400m.
1 Platinum State; 2 Mishani Stealth; 3 Trakstar; 4 Crocodile Dancer.
Time: 1-24.06. Last 600: 35.90.
Margins:0.10; 0.10.

Platinum State’s win in the QTIS Three-year-old Handicap at Eagle Farm on Saturday was achieved by a solid mixture of ability, grit and determination.

Back in eighth place on straightening, locked away on the rail in a fairly packing field, was really not the place to be if you were looking to chart a winning run, but by that stage Platinum State had to play with the cards he’d been dealt with and both he and rider Chris Munce were certainly up to turning that into a winning hand.

Not that it was easy. Extracating yourself from that sort of predicament almost always requires three things … a touch of patience, a slice of luck and you have to be ready to take any opportunity that might be offered.

The patience was there. Munce, with nowhere to go, did not search for any optimistic option. He just kept Platinum State plugging away down the inside. The slice of luck arrived when a reasonable gap opened up between two tiring horses (All My Angels and Lita) and Munce urged Platinum State through the opening. Now there was an opportunity, but there was still plenty of work to do.

As Munce angled Platinum State back towards the rail, Crocodile Dancer was making every effort to cling on the her lead, but now, with Platinum State closing and Mishani Stealth and Trakstar charging out wider on the track, it was going to be a really close call.

Platinum State put his head in front when it mattered most and he was just able to tough it out to prevail in a blanket finish from a wall of horses headed by Mishani Stealth and Trackstar. All three of these runners ultimately ran Crocodile Dancer, who only finished 0,30 lengths off the winner, out of the placings as only 1.30 lengths covered the first six runners across the line.

This was Platinum State’s second win and it came in his eighth career start. Platinum State (Falvelon - Stately Command) is owned by G R Goon and J Grech. The three-year-old was bred by G R Goon.

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Bryan Guy: “This horse is part of the whole Stately family. Dad started it off in the sixties … the mare Stately Queen, Stately Glow … you know, all the Statelys.

“Geoff Goon, who co-owns this horse, his father used to race all his horses with my father and that association has just kept going right up until now …that’s about forty odd years, so it’s great.

“Last time (when finishing unplaced behind Ain’t She Sweet) he had 59kg on his back and he was caught three wide. I was away at the time and Chris (Munce) came in and told my foreman that the run was enormous to finish off where he finished. He said, if he draws an alley next start he will nearly win.

“Before he went out today I told Chris to ride it the same as Grey Assignment (who won a race earlier) and I think he did.

“Where to now? We’ve just got to find another three-year-old race for him. He is up in the weights as you can see which is making it a bit tough. He only won a mid-week Maiden before this and ran second to Snipsu in one of those QTIS 600’s but they haven’t missed him with the weights, so I’ll just have to sit down and work it out.”

Jockey Chris Munce: “The other day when I rode him he had no luck whatsoever in the run. I came in and I said to Bryan (Guy) that he would win his next start.

“From the day I won his first start on him he has had ability but he hasn’t really switched on. He’s getting better with racing and I think now the penny might have dropped with him.

“As far as getting the run on the inside, I was just waiting to see what happened. I was in that position and I didn’t have too many options. I just had to wait and see.

“I was just fortunate enough that when the gaps started to appear he was going well enough to take them.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Platinum State): 15.00 steady.
Equal favourite (Crocodile Dancer): 8.00 in to 6.50. Finished fourth.
Equal favourite (Mishani Ladyhawke): 6.00 in to 5.50 out to 6.50. Finished tenth.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Connections advised that Congo would be ridden in a midfield position with cover today. The horse was ridden accordingly.

Fusil De Eve (D. Browne), Mishani Ladyhawke (L. Cassidy) and Trakstar (R. McMahon) were slow to begin. Accidental (J. Lloyd) and Ain't She Sweet (L. Cheshire) made contact at the start.

Lita (R. Myers) raced fiercely in the early stages.

Near the 1100m, Fusil De Eve contacted the running rail and lost ground when tightened for room by Congo (G. Colless), which was taken in by Mishani Ladyhawke, which, when over-racing, was also taken in by Trakstar.

When assessing this incident, stewards were of the view that the racing manners of Mishani Ladyhawke contributed to the incident, however R. McMahon, rider of Trakstar, was issued with a severe reprimand and advised to ensure he provides his fellow riders with sufficient racing room in similar circumstances in future.

Approaching the 300m, Lita shifted out and bumped Mishani Stealth (B. Stewart).

Mishani Stealth hung in when placed under pressure over the final 200m.

Accidental, Trakstar, Mishani Lady and Antarctic Dream (T. Bell) raced wide throughout.

Stewards sought an explanation from L. Cassidy regarding the performance of Mishani Ladyhawke.

Jockey L. Cassidy stated that after being slow to begin, the filly over-raced in the early and middle stages and this had an effect on its ability to finish the race off. He attributed the filly's racing manners to the significant step up in distance today.