Before the Carbine Club of WA Stakes, Adam Durrant’s words to his jockey Clint Johnston-Porter were “wait until you feel this bloke – he’s got a big loping stride on him”.
The top Perth trainer certainly was not wrong, with Johnston-Porter – currently second in the Western Australian riders’ premiership – timing his run aboard Minsk Moment to perfection.
The four-year-old colt launched an impressive turn of foot late on the straight and on the outside to salute by a length in the Listed feature worth $125,000 over 1400m.
2022 Carbine Club Of WA Stakes Replay
“He’s an eye-catching colt. Lovely animal,” the star Perth jockey told Sky Racing.
“Adam said to me ‘wait unti you feel this bloke – he’s got a nice, big loping stride on him’.
“And he was dead on the money.
“I lobbed in a perfect spot early and got to take off when I wanted to, and I got this one right.
“Adam thought if he was at his best he’d be hard to beat and he was right about that.”
After master Sydney trainer Chris Waller sent over the developing sprinter on Monday, Durrant knew he did not have to do much with him this week.
“Chris Waller sent him over in good nick on Monday,” he said.
“You only have to look at him – he looks fantastic. We’ve had a saddle on him once.
“We took him down the beach and we’ve been doing a lot of work in the water, not rushing him.
“We’re just keeping him happy without gallops. He did plenty of work in the water and it’s kept him up to the mark.”
Durrant now believes his four-year-old can be competitive at Group 3 level.
“He’s a nice quality horse. We’re hoping to get to the 1400m Group 3 race in a couple of weeks,” he said.
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