Winning Horse: Arran Bay

Race Result:

1st: Arran Bay (Phillip Stokes /Zac Spain) - $3.80EF

2nd: The Nephew (Patrick Payne/Daniel Stackhouse) - $15
3rd: Falls (Michael Kent/Josh Richards) - $41

Winning Time: 1:39.03 Last 600m: NA

Margins: Neck x half-neck

Winning Trainer: Philip Stokes

On the win: “It’s been a tough day at the office but I thought he was our best chance and he done good today, obviously first-up he did a lot of things wrong but he took good improvement from it and it was a good tough win. He’s a really nice horse going forward.”

Summer plan: “I’m not sure how deep we’ll get , he’s still got furnishing to do and he’s coming out of a very cold winter so I’ll just see how he pulls up. I think he’s a stakes horse in the making but we won’t be in any rush to get him there.”

Winning Jockey: Zac Spain

The riun: “I thought he was really tough today , great training performance by Phillip , second-up at the mile . He’s a very highly strung horse , I thought the occasion could have got to him, he was hot headed and sweaty behind the barriers . The plan before the race was to be in the forward half that’s just naturally him, he flies the barriers so with a lovely big run in from the mile start I just bided my time getting across, one he got there he was a little bit keen but that’s just him .

Travelled well into the straight and I just wanted to bide my time , being second-up up to the mile and when I asked for him he really quickened up well, I thought if something had come to him he would have toughed it out.”

Final stages: “I was a little bit (worried) coming into the straight I just knew that I didn’t want to go for him too early being a long straight here. He really quickened up underneath me , he’s a lovely horse , he’s still a little bit mentally immature so there’s a lot of improvement there and under Phil’s care he’ll make the grade for sure.”

xxxxx