NOLAN LANDS HIS TENTH WINNER FOR THE YEAR AT A WINNING STRIKE-RATE OF 31.25 PERCENT

By Graham Potter | Saturday, February 17, 2024

Three winners in four days ... another set of results which continued the great start to 2024 for the Michael Nolan stable who have now saddled ten winners in the first seven weeks of the year ... coming from thirty-two starters at a significant, positive strike-rate of 31.25 percent.

On top of that, stable runners have also filled four second places, six third places, and four fourth places ... meaning that no less than twenty-four of the thirty-two Nolan trained runners (that’s seventy-five percent) finished with their numbers in the frame during this period of time.

Motell kicked off the three winners in four days sequence on February 14 (see separate story) and New Joy (a winner on February 15) and Master Gee (on February 17) fired up quickly after that to keep the scoreboard rolling along very nicely.

New Joy, a lightly raced, three-year-old son of Heroic Valour had two runs before he first saluted in his third career start in a Maiden over 1300m at Toowoomba on January 1 ... and he kept the sequence of two runs followed by a win going here with this victory in a QTIS Three-Year-Old BM58 Handicap over 1350m in his sixth career start.

The chestnut, the $3.20 second favourite who was ridden by Damien Thornton, took a neutral position in midfield early on as the $1.55 favourite The Punisher went out to set the early target. Ilfracombe Kid ($9.50) relieved The Punisher of the lead mid-race ... but that was just a temporary situation with The Punisher moving up to regain the lead on the point of the home turn.

At that stage New Joy, who had been hard ridden in the approach to the home turn when tracking The Punisher into the race, still had a little over two lengths to make up on the favourite ... and Thornton had to keep riding vigorously in what turned into a long chase down the home straight if he hoped to secure the result.

Even at the 100m mark it looked like The Punisher was doing enough to take the race honours, but Thornton’s never-say-die attitude and New Joy’s commitment to the task saw the Nolan trained runner gain the advantage late to peg back The Punisher in the last 30m to win going away by a 0.76 length margin.
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At Toowoomba on February 17, the Nolan trained Master Gee continued his recent good work since returning from a six month break from race action when he won a BM60 Handicap over 1000m.

The four-year-old son of Better Than Ready had rounded off his last preparation by shedding his Maiden ticket over 1200m at Ipswich on July 13, 2023, in his tenth career start.

He certainly deserved that win on his record as, prior to that breakthrough win, Master Gee had finished in second place on four successive occasions, never finishing more than 1.5- lengths back in each of those starts.

Master Gee resumed with another runner-up finish on his return at Warwick over the 800m dash on January 29 ... and this time he didn’t have to wait long to set the record straight, coming out here as a warm $3.80 favourite to claim the win under Bubba Tilley.

Master Gee’s overall record now stands at two wins (in his last three starts) ... from twelve career outings ... with $81 535 earned in prize-money.

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