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A bold frontrunning ride from in-form apprentice jockey Zawari Razali saw the Mark Walker-trained Black Quail pinch the $45,000 Class 4 Non Premier race over 1400m with some authority on Friday night.
Zawari, who had earlier saluted aboard $249 longshot CloudBurst (also prepared by Walker) in the $20,000 Open Maiden Division 1 race over 1400m, rated Black Quail ($27) to perfection, taking up the running as soon as the gates opened, giving his mount a breather midrace before going for broke at the top of the straight.
Favourite ($23) Loving You (Azhar Ismail) did give the impression he would easily assert his superiority when he came off heels at the 300m to mow him down, but his turn of foot lacked the punch to put the race away.
Black Quail kept working home solidly to outsprint Loving You by half-a-length with the well-backed Allegro (Troy See) chiming in late for third place, another gap of 2 ¼ lengths away. The winning time was 1min 23.54secs for the 1400m on the Long Course.
With that riding double, Zawari takes his 2018 tally to 13 winners, a score which is, however, half of that of current leader Troy See. Zawari lies in fifth spot on the log.
The Kelantan-born rider was in the first two months of the season regarded as one of the main challengers in the title race, even topping the log in February, but he then hit a barren run – four months without winning - that saw him drop out of contention.
Zawari finally managed to stop the rot in July, picking up winners on a more regular basis – with his first double on Friday a high point to his 2018 season.
“This horse (Black Quail) is a strong frontrunner and that’s the way to ride him,” said Zawari who rode the Coats Choice five-year-old to his only other win at Kranji back in December in identical fashion.
“He led easily, but he was always on the bit. In the straight, I asked him to go, and even though the other horse (Waialae) came up to us, he went again.
“I actually didn’t see the favourite coming at us in the last bit. My horse just kept going.”
With that second win in 13 starts, along with his six placings, Black Quail has taken his stakes earnings close to the $110,000 mark for the Natuzzi Racing Stable.
Walker said that Black Quail was an honest galloper who is always a threat if left alone upfront.
“He’s a consistent and honest horse who deserved the win tonight,” said the Kiwi handler.
“The second horse was probably unlucky, but that’s racing.”
