The biggest winning margin of the day came in the final race at Ascot today, but at the 800m mark few would have predicted the eventual victor.
Pounded in the market in the minutes prior to the jump, Patronize 5yo Raindance Maggie ($4.60 – $3.40 fav) trailed the runaway bolter Fathoms Of Gold ($6.00) by over a dozen lengths at the halfway mark of The Sunday Times HCP BM60+ 1800m – but this race was far from over.
Heading the remainder of the pack, veteran jockey Peter Hall took off at the 600m mark with Raindance Maggie to hunt down the leader and quickly gathered it in before extending in the straight to race away with a 3 ¾ length exhibition.
Second elect Dabang ($4.60) finished off nicely to claim the runner-up prize, in a blanket finish with the fast finishing Already Famous ($5.00) in third.
Speaking after the race trainer Adam Durrant was full of praise for his classy mare – “that was a career best performance…you can’t ask any more than a mare that is in form – they give you their best and generally speaking they’ll die for you…she hasn’t let us down all preparation”.
It was the fourth win from 17 career starts for Raindance Maggie, and the second over the 1800m trip.
The win gave Adam Durrant a race day treble having earlier prepared Tick Tick Bloom ($1.30 fav) in the Vale Elite Belle HCP BM72+ 1800m, and Carry The Nation ($6.50) in the Skyy Vodka HCP BM72+ 1400m.
By Chris Blackwell
