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A six-month spell did not stop rank-outsider Billy Britain from making a victorious comeback on Sunday, blowing punters out of the water with his last-to-first win on Sunday.
The One Cool Cat four-year-old had not raced since his last-start seventh on January 5, capping off a lacklustre series of runs at similar Class 4 level since his only win in an Initiation race last September. Trainer Stephen Gray’s decision to put the gelding away seems to have paid handsome dividends, literally given his mammoth payout of $255.
Bringing up the rear from the start, Billy Britain was unsighted for most of the seven-furlong journey on the Long Course until he came circling the field at the point of turn. Though he was inclined to lay in under pressure, Billy Britain steadily pulled the ground off Deauville (Corey Brown) to draw level at the 50m before landing the spoils with a neck to spare.
Favourite Forever Lucky (John Sundradas) looked a rrealistic chance at the 300m when she came from midfield to launch her challenge, but she could not quite gun down the first two to settle for third another two lengths away. The winning time was 1min 22.91secs for the 1400m on the Long Course.
Though the triple-figure odds are a clear indication that Billy Britain had been widely neglected in the market, Gray said he had some degree of confidence, though he would not have been surprised either if he had needed the run.
“He is a promising horse, but his form tapered off a little and I gave him a spell,” said the Kiwi trainer.
“He’s come back good, stronger and fresh. I thought he might have needed the run even though he has had a good preparation, but that’s what stayers do first-up over a shorter trip at times.
“He’s by a Zabeel mare and his trip is probably 2000m. There are no excuses for the other horses, as he gave them a start today.
“He’s won at very good odds. It’s good for the owner, Paul Hickman as he’s been one of my best supporters for a number of years.”
Billy Britain turned out to be a winning pick-up ride for Brazilian jockey Ivaldo Santana after heavyweight jockey John Powell could not make the allotted 55kgs on the card, but Gray revealed Santana was only third in the pecking order.
“I gave the ride to JP because I thought it would suit him, but when he could not make the weight, I asked Danny Beasley to ride him, but he knocked it back. No worries, Santana took the ride and he rode him a treat.
“I just told him to ride the horse quiet, and he hit the line really well.”
From his record of two wins and one second, Billy Britain has picked up prizemoney close to $90,000 for the St George No 2 Stable.