The prestige of winning the Group 1 Queensland Derby is one thing but the addition of earning a start in the $2.1 million Eureka over 2400 metres at Menangle in September has trainer Emma Stewart and driver Mark Pitt as excited as they have ever been heading towards a feature.
The three-year-old colt dominated the 2680-metre event and set alight in the final lap to notch a mile rate of 1:55.2 after leading comfortably throughout.
The Derby earned The Lost Storm ($1.09) a second top line victory.
“If it was going to be that easy we’d all be able to drive one but he is such a great colt,” Pitt said.
“To do what he’s done to date, he’s done what with ease.
“He’s perfect (in that) you can chase him off a little bit and he does drop the bit. He had to over the 2600 (metres) and he probably had a bit of class on them but you never know until you’re in it.”
Emma Stewart says that the colt by Captaintreacherous has the scope to be among the best she has trained.
“He’s definitely up there with them,” Stewart said.
“He’s got to get the score on the board but ability-wise he’s up there with the best ones.”
The Group 1 Queensland Oaks (2138m) delivered a local blowout victory as Torque Like Motion ($41) came from four back on the pegs to strike late for her sixth career win in 19 starts for father and son duo Wayne and Shane Graham.
“It is special. When you’re not expecting them they’re always pretty good,” regular driver Shane said.
“There was a lot of luck there but at least she was still good enough to do the job.”
The feature for trotter, the Group 1 Queensland Trotters Cup (2138m) was taken out by Majestic Trio ($6) in a positive twist for part-owner and Canberra Raiders captain Jarrod Crocker who turned disappointed on the NRL pitch the night before into his first top level winner.
As far as trainer and driver Brad Hewitt is concerned, there is more to come for the five-year-old mare.
“For a trotter, she’s only five-year-old and had 32 starts so it isn’t a whole lot of starts for a trotter,” he said.
“He’d (Croker) be really happy. A bit better than last night going from rags to riches. A really good story.”