DARING RAIL RUN SECURES DECISIVE VICTORY FOR BALLACK IN CHAIRMAN’S HANDICAP

By Graham Potter | Saturday, May 9, 2009

Chairman’s Handicap (Group 3 - Quality) - 2020m. Time 2-03.37. Track: Good 3. Rail: True.
1 Ballack; 2 Rabukka; 3 Sir Slick.

Damian Oliver’s decision to sweat on an inside run for Ballack paid off big time. The gelding rewarded the rider for his patience, and for being allowed a kinder run, by producing a daring and determined finishing burst. This carried him past the ever-game Sir Slick and on to the finish where he had too much in hand for the fast finishing Rabukka, who arrived late to claim second placing.

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Danny O’Brien: “He raced very well here last carnival. We brought him up a bit earlier this year to try and get him to the Brisbane Cup. He’s got good improvement in him. He was second-up today and obviously it was an excellent ride. It was a beautiful ride on the inside and the horse has got some really nice races coming up - so it was a good start to the carnival for us.

“We’re probably going to run him in a 2200m handicap here, I’d say, in two weeks time and then two weeks to the Brisbane Cup. He’s a nice stayer. He’s always been a length or two off ... he’s run third in the Perth Cup and at the W.A Derby. He’s a bit similar to (A D Hollindale Stakes winner) Fulmonti last week. He is a Montjeu and as they get older they find a length or two and that’s all he’s needed to do to start winning some of the better staying races. Last year we got him up here just for the one run at the back end of the carnival. He won the Tatts Cup.”

Jockey Damien Oliver: “He’s got a nice turn of foot. They didn’t go hard. Got up there. I was sort of jammed up a bit before the turn. I mean I was following good horses so I knew they would take me a fair way. I hadn’t spent a penny, so I knew if a run did come he would have plenty to offer. I didn’t have a lot of options, so I just persevered with the inside. I could see Sir Slick just edging off the rail a little bit and when the run came on the inside there he dug through it really fast. There wasn’t much room there, but he is a little horse, so he did really well. He was full of running at the finish. He was very impressive today and those are the sort of horses he is going to meet in later races. It’s my first sit on him. He’s not a big horse ... there isn’t a lot of him ... but he might be a horse that just loves these Queensland winters, mate. I haven’t looked that far ahead, but I think I would like to stick with the horse. He’ll be a nice horse to stick with.”

Danny O’Brien: “For sure Damian can keep the ride. It would be difficult to sack him after that.”
Part-owners B Broomhead and A Jones had the distinction of winning the Chairmans’s Handicap for the second successive year. They are also the co-owners of Fulmonti who took out the 2008 running of the event. Fulmonti was a feature race winner last week, scoring in the Group 2, A D Hollindale Stakes at the Gold Coast.

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Ballack): 8.00 out to 8.50.
Favourite (Rabbuka): 3.00 out to 3.20 in to 3.00.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
Jockey Blake Shinn (Rabbuka) pleaded guilty to a charge of careless riding under AR. 137(a), in that near the 250m he permitted his mount to shift out and dictate the line of Go Cart, resulting in that horse being taken out on to Queens Of Queens, which had to be checked when tightened between Go Cart and Imvula. B. Shinn's licence to ride in races was suspended for a period of 8 meetings, with the term of suspension to commence at midnight on 13 May and expire at midnight on Thursday, 28 May 2009. A $500 fine was also imposed.