BAANONE SILENCES THE DOUBTERS

By Graham Potter | Saturday, July 8, 2023

It is not often you see a smile of that size on the face of trainer Tony Sears!

It was a Saturday at Doomben (July 8) and the eight-year-old New Zealand bred gelding Baanone had just prevailed in a highly pressurized finish (less than half-a-length covered the first five runners across the line) to secure a BM90 Handicap over 1800m.

A win is a win … is a win … but when it comes at a starting price of $31! Well, let’s just say it adds to the pleasure of those who ignored the ‘unwanted in the betting’ signs.

And, while it is easy to be wise after the event, there was some reason to ignore any negative suggestions about the chances of the son of Shocking, the 2009 Melbourne Cup winner.

Those reasons lay in a dissection of Baanone’s previous run at Ipswich in a BM78 Handicap over 1666m.

Unwanted there too at $41, Baanone jumped from the number ten barrier draw … went back to race near the rear of the field for much of the trip … was ridden for luck down the inside on straightening … got none … tried to get out … couldn’t … and, as a consequence, went to the line virtually untested to finish 3.70 lengths behind the winner Mississippi Prince.

While there was nothing definitive in that run suggesting Baanone would be a winner next time out, there was enough excuses to suggest he might be worth another chance.

Three weeks later Baanone was back in action and that chance came at Doomben.

Not that those who bet against him would have been at all worried in the early part. Taken back from the number eight barrier draw by Jaden Lloyd, Baanone strolled along in a clear last place, being all of ten lengths off the leader going down the back straight.

You could make that eight lengths with 600m left to run with Baanone holding an inside line as he tracked up to the home turn. By saving ground Lloyd had cut the deficit to just four lengths on straightening, but Baanone entered the home straight with a wall of horses in front of him.

Sound familiar. Certainly, for the doubters there was still seemingly no cause for concern … that is until Lloyd and Baanone decided to make their own luck.

Lloyd certainly wasn’t going to die wondering. He pushed Baanone as far forward as he could until he was in danger of running onto heels, at which time he shifted out marginally and urged Baanone to take a gap between two runners … a tight gap and one which threatened to close almost as soon as Lloyd had targeted it.

Baanone put his head into the gap and, ignoring the danger of being sandwiched and cut out of the race, the eight-year-old responded like a horse half his age, forging his way into the clear where he still had to deal with strong challenges being produced on either side of him.

With firm focus and strong commitment Baanone was now in full flight, seemingly relishing the freedom to stretch out … and this time he would not be denied in any shape or form, powering his way to the line to win by 0.37 lengths.

It was as courageous as it was a quality performance from Baanone who was winning for the ninth time from fifty-one starts to take his prize-money earners to $361 100.

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