Clinton McDonald and Ben Melham have combined with Angel Capital to claim victory in the Group 3 Caulfield Guineas Prelude at Caulfield on Saturday afternoon.
The son of Harry Angel was given an 11 out of 10 ride by Melham as he weaved his way through traffic before sprinting past his rivals to take out the 1400m contest.
Since returning to Melbourne to race on firmer tracks, Angel Capital has recorded back-to-back wins en route to the Group 1 Caulfield Guines in three weeks.
Wanaruah and Feroce set a solid tempo at the front and looked to up the ante before the home turn, as many of the backmarkers began to struggle with 500m to go.
Meanwhile, the likes of Private Life, Public Attention and the eventual winner were trucking along behind the speed and were ready to pounce.
Melham switched back to the inside running rail to take over with 150m to go, and he was able to hold off the fast-finishing Public Attention and Wanaruah, who filled the placings.
2024 Caulfield Guineas Prelude replay – Angel Capital
Clinton McDonald spoke about the victory post-race.
“Big thanks to the staff, especially Tarni, who looks after him. So, it’s just nice to put yourself on the line and see the horse reward you like that,” McDonald said.
“We do think he’ll run a mile.
“Obviously, that was a great winner, so he had to get back to the worst ground and lost momentum, and the horses down the outside had the momentum.
“So, we think he’s a proper colt, he’s showing us that now, and I’m just spewing a half of a bet with the track being a bit shifty!
“Well, we know how to win both (Coolmore Stud Stakes and Caulfield Guineas).
“We did it with (Weekend) Hustler, so we might do it with this colt.
“He does things at home that only the real good ones do, and we’re pretty happy with him.”
Ben Melham echoed similar thoughts to McDonald in his post-race interview.
“Yeah, well, our opinions never changed of him,” Melham said.
“I’ve always had a really high opinion of him.
“I was a bit concerned going to the barriers today because he’s just been going that well and the more work we do with him.
“He came in today, I thought he was a bit above himself, and his horse is a little bit windy, so you’ve got to keep him in a nice rhythm, and from a better draw today, I had to give him a little squeeze away, and I was really happy the way he handled himself.
“He relaxed really well, he was a bit sticky coming into the corner.
“I was just waiting on a run and the inside wasn’t really my preference, but that’s where it opened up and I knew I had plenty of horse, so I had to go there and his ability shone through at the finish.
“Well, I knew I had plenty of horse under me, but I had the better chances on my outside in the better ground, so it just adds more merit to his win, I think.
“He was strong through the line there, so he’d probably head to the mile at this stage and if he gets things right, he’s, you know, you have a lot of chances for sure.”
Angel Capital is a $7 chance with top horse racing bookmakers in the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas futures markets.
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