The Group 1 Moir Stakes will headline the program at Moonee Valley, but seeing Amelia’s Jewel (-303.03) go around in the Group 2 Stocks Stakes was a very close second for all punters and spectators on track.
The West Australian mare did not disappoint, as she proved a class above to take out the Stocks Stake in dominant fashion under a very kind ride from jockey Damian Lane.
Many spectators, including Simon Miller, were surprised to see the daughter of Siyouni settle second behind a tearaway leader in Pride Of Jenni (+1500), but nothing was going to undo the eventual winner.
Even though the leader tried to run all of her rivals off their legs, there was never any doubt around the race favourite and star mare Amelia’s Jewel, as she got off the leaders heels to idle straight past her and take over with 100m to go.
Pride Of Jenni was able to hold on for second place, while Deny Knowledge (+900) ran home nicely into third place to fill the placings.
Trainer of Amelia’s Jewel, Simon Miller spoke post-race about the win and a possible return to the scene of the crime to run in a Cox Plate later in the spring.
“She just looked like she was doing it easy, didn’t she?” Miller said.
“When she was outside the leader I thought ‘oh well, she’s never been here before’.
“I didn’t give Frosty any instructions, I just said ‘you do you and I’ll do me’.
“If she has run a track record, then clearly she can absorb pressure and Deano used to say to me that if there is pressure in the race then she runs better, and he’s right.
“She’s not wound up yet and her coat is still improving, so we’ve still got heaps of wiggle room there, so she’s not screwed down yet.”
When Miller was pressed about coming back to the Valley for a Cox Plate over 2040m, he simply replied with, “it’s on the cards, but Frosty will play a big part in that”.
Damian Lane has joined Mark Zahra by winning the same race two years in a row, after he claimed the Stocks Stakes on Daises last year.
“It wasn’t that easy, I had to ask her for a bit of an effort,” Lane said.
“Pride Of Jenni made a real race of it and I’m glad I got her into a position early, because I don’t think I would have been able to pick her up late.
“It’s hard to say, but I would be recommending to keep her down in Melbourne, but we will talk to Simon (Miller) and see what the ownership group thinks and go from there.”
Amelia’s Jewel is now a +450 second favourite in the Cox Plate futures market with most online bookmakers.
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