Having gone winless through six previous starts, Central Europe finally broke his maiden status in a truly dominant display, suggesting his initial victory is merely the first of many.
While trainer Chris Waller was in attendance at Flemington for the Cox Plate, Hall of Famer Darren Beadman was present to represent the stable and offered high praise for the colt.
“We obviously thought a lot of the colt early days as a two-year-old running him in the better class two-year-old races,” Beadman stated. “He’s still doing a few of the little things wrong that he needed to be doing right in his early races.”
“But the trip down to Melbourne and running in a tough race, the Caulfield Guineas (fourth to Warwoven) has helped him. Today, the plan was to keep it very simple in the first half of the race then we had to trust his acceleration and his turn of speed. What he did to today was what he has always promised at home.”
As the $3.40 favourite, Central Europe unleashed a stunning burst of acceleration from the head of the straight. Coming from near the rear of the field, he surged clear of his competitors to win by a convincing three-and-a-quarter lengths over Why So Hard ($3.60), with Lafite ($5) securing third place a further one-and-a-quarter lengths adrift.
Beadman acknowledged that the sole moment of apprehension arose around the 1000-metre mark when the tempo slackened momentarily, prompting Central Europe to show a propensity for over-racing.
“He wanted to get on the ‘chewy’ a bit but Jason (Collett, jockey) has beautiful hands and got him back underneath him,” Beadman explained. “He had curled him up like a coiled spring coming into the corner and once he let loose on him he was all class.”
Collett commented that Central Europe is still in the learning phase of his racing career, but indicated that when the colt “executes correctly,” he possesses significant talent.
“James (McDonald, jockey) spoke to me on Wednesday about him which gave me confidence,” Collett shared. “Even just the way Darren (Beadman) spoke to me about him before the race today filled me with more confidence. Everyone knows about the ability he has. He just needs to get it right. This was a good stepping stone.”
While Central Europe impressively distanced his rivals for an easy victory, the performance of runner-up Why So Hard was equally noteworthy and full of potential.
Why So Hard, competing in only his third career start, demonstrated commendable resilience to fight back under pressure and secure the second position.
Michael Hawkes, who manages Why So Hard in conjunction with his brother Wayne and their father John, described it as “a superior effort” from their promising, lightly-raced three-year-old.
“He had to work early down the back straight, they didn’t make it easy for him,” Hawkes commented. “He was going to get caught wide and had to use him a little bit to get across. Then he got flushed out again and dropped the bit. He is still a ‘baby’ and doesn’t know what he is doing yet, he is doing it on raw talent.”
“Look, he got beaten by a seasoned horse and it’s a good horse, but to still run where he did was a very good effort under the circumstances. He has gone from 1200m to 1600m, done it from barrier to box, he has run enormous and is going to be better with time – he’s a proper horse!”
Central Europe dominated his rivals to secure a comfortable win, but the runner-up, Why So Hard, also delivered a promising performance.
Why So Hard, in only his third career outing, showed great tenacity to fight back and claim second spot.
Michael Hawkes, who trains Why So Hard with his brothers Wayne and John, stated it was “a superior effort” from the promising three-year-old.
“He had to work early down the back straight, they didn’t make it easy for him,” Hawkes said. “He was going to get caught wide and had to use him a little bit to get across. Then he got flushed out again and dropped the bit. He is still a ‘baby’ and doesn’t know what he is doing yet, he is doing it on raw talent.”
“Look, he got beaten by a seasoned horse and it’s a good horse, but to still run where he did was a very good effort under the circumstances. He has gone from 1200m to 1600m, done it from barrier to box, he has run enormous and is going to be better with time – he’s a proper horse!”
For those keen to get involved, the latest racing odds for upcoming feature races can be found at Australian betting sites.
