The Stephens – Grade I
7 Furlongs Dirt Stake Purse $500.000 Open 3 Year Olds.

1st Good Knights Our Athletes Geroux F

It makes a nice change to be talking about a winner from a stable other than Fractious or Mb Stables. Though a little bit surprising considering the difference in work times and form this was a very nice victory from a horse that has looked like this seven furlongs was always going to be his best trip. Working in midfield off a breakneck early pace that had been set up by the wide gate horse using the tactic to aid their other stable runners it was he rather than the runner up stable companions that benefited most. In the end, it was a fairly comfortable win, but the trick will now be trying to find more seven-furlong races for him to run in.

2nd Hurricane Ridge Fractious Prat F

As I expected, this one went off at high speed and set a very fast pace that was probably meant to help its stable mates. We saw in the Pascoe that he can maintain a strong gallop over this trip, so it was no surprise to see him still leading with a furlong to run. The effort however told in the final furlong, but he still managed to hold onto a highly creditable second.

3rd Southern Oak South Shore Stables Cabrera D

Stalking the fast pace, he was always going to be vulnerable, but he surprised me by holding on to third in a really good effort. I find it hard to rate this horse, but it is clear that he is a very good sprinter, I am just not sure how much better he can be.

4th Chisel Fractious Franco M

The old tactics of setting a suicidal pace with one horse and putting your other one out the back used to be the go-to tactic on the old race engine but closers these days do not fly like they used to, and the tactic didn’t come off today. This horse is still to live up to his promise and whilst he ran on well enough, I still thought he could push his way through to win. Whether it is the fact that he hasn’t been gelded yet meaning there is probably some improvement in his on-course performance still locked up or whether he just needs a bit more experience I don’t know but when he gets it right, I am still convinced he would blow a field like this away.

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES