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Popular local galloper Coup Darci Be showed just how dangerous he can be.

He downed his open class sprinting rivals with a late surge to score career victory number 10 in the PPG Wrightson sponsored 1000 metre dash at Riccarton on Saturday.

The now seven-year-old gelding has proven a model of consistency for his connections that include trainer Michael Pitman who prepares the horse with son Matthew at their Riccarton base.

Pitman was confident of a good performance leading into the contest as he felt the conditions of the race suited his charge down to the ground.

“Sometimes I argue with the handicappers and sometimes I agree with them however he won this race today as it was absolutely set up for him at the weights, so I was pretty confident,” he said.

“I said to Parvesh (Shaikh) before the race to just let him go to sleep early and make sure his best two hundred metres is his last two hundred.”

Shaikh followed those instructions to the letter as he settled the Darci Brahma gelding last of the eight runners in the early stages of the contest. Still last as the field rounded the home bend Shaikh angled to the outside for his run, with race favourite Red Dirt Girl on his inner, and stormed home to top off the consistent mare by a length in a sparkling 55.68 seconds for the 1000 metre journey.

The victory also franked Pitman’s actions on Friday at the New Zealand Bloodstock South Island Sale where he outlaid $30,000 for a Swiss Ace colt from Eleanor Coup, a daughter of Besty Coup who is the dam of Coup Darci Be. Pitman described his purchase as one of the best colts in the sale who hails from a family that includes Gr. 1 AJC Derby winner Shamrocker and Gr. 1 Auckland Cup winner Rock Diva.