DOOM JAN 26 - END TO END WIN FOR FLY BY ME

By Graham Potter | Thursday, January 28, 2010

Doomben, January 26, 2010.
Track - Good 2. Rail - out 0.5m.
Maiden Plate (3yo and up - Set weights) - 1615m. Time: 1-37.45. (Carrying 55.5kg).
1 Fly With Me; 2 Santo De Lago; 3 Iron Red.

The Bevan Laming trained Fly With Me led his field a merry dance here.

Jockey Jim Byrne sent the gelding to the lead from the break and he confidently dictated the terms throughout to race away to a comfortable victory.

The short-priced favourite Santo De Lago was up with the speed for the most part. The Les Kelly trained runner cornered in third place, three wide and some 2.50 lengths off Fly With Me and, although he got into second place in the run home, he was still 1.80 lengths adrift of Fly By Me who was never threatened in the final chase to the line.

WINNER FEEDBACK:
Trainer Bevan Laming: “Yeah look, he has been a slow maturing horse. He needed a mile and this race suited him nicely. He has a big horse and he’s taken a bit of time. (Jockey) Michael Cahill said this horse will stay. It will stay.

“He’s got a nice pedigree and I think when he gets to 1800m ... 2000m we’ll see a pretty competitive horse. We’ll take out time again getting him there. He’ll have a break now.”

Jockey Jim Byrne: “It was our intention to go forward with him today. He’s been drawn a little bit awkward his last starts, so they went back. Today he had a pretty good draw so we went forward to control the tempo. Going into the race Bevan (Laming) thought he would go pretty well and that’s just what he did.

“Bevan said Michael Cahill had said that the horse would run a really strong mile. You know, when Michael tells you something you better take note.”

PRICE FLUCTUATIONS:
Winner (Fly With Me): 17.00 out to 21.00.
Favourite (Santo De Lago): 1.80 out to 1.90. Finished second.

STEWARDS REPORT EXTRACT:
As S. Scriven was indisposed due to illness stewards permitted C. Reith to be substituted as the rider of Iron Red.

Tamose (G. Colless) began awkwardly. Check The Leader (App M. Hellyer) and Indeed I Am (C. Reith) were both slow to begin.

Approaching the first turn Chadwick (App M. Palmer) commenced to over-race and did so until near the 1200m. Charmingly (B. Pengelly), Weslang (J. Taylor), Cotham (S. Galloway) and Pure Act (App L. Rolls) all over-raced in the middle stages of the event.

Charmingly was held up rounding the home turn and in the early stages of the straight and was unable to be fully tested until leaving the 200m.

Santo De Lago (S. Katsidis), Golden Dove (S. Seamer), Red Gold (L. Cassidy) and Indeed I Am (C. Reith) all raced wide throughout the event. S. Seamer dropped his whip at the 100m.

D. Griffin the rider of Iron Red reported that he was held up approaching and rounding the home turn and whilst he would have liked to have shifted wider at that point he was unable to do so as a result of Golden Dove racing tight to his outside. Iron Red was again held up for clear running between the tiring Tamose and Santo De Lago leaving the 250m.

Stewards sought an explanation from trainer B. Laming in respect to the seemingly improved performance of Fly With Me (J. Byrne) as opposed to its most recent start where it was placed 15th of 16 at the Gold Coast on 9 January 2010.

B. Laming explained that on that occasion the rider M. Cahill was obliged to ride the horse in a rearward position from its difficult barrier as the gelding did not possess the required early speed to take up a forward position. B. Laming added that from a good barrier today Fly With Me was able to secure the lead in what was a slowly run race, which in his opinion was a major contributor to the horse's improved performance.

A post race veterinary examination of Tamose, which hung in badly in the straight, revealed the gelding to be lame in the off-fore leg. A veterinary certificate of fitness will be required before the horse again races.