The Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young trained three-year-old Emphasize (NZ) (Embellish( has again flagged his staying credentials with a hard-fought victory over older horses in the Super Bowl Monday Handicap (2000m) at Caulfield.
The son of Embellish cruised to victory at Sale in January and was due to step out at Sandown last week, but dislodged his rider on the way to the barriers and was duly scratched.
Seven days later the gelding put up a tough performance to loop the field and stave off handy four-year-old Inevitable Award as he posted his second victory from three starts.
Stakes targets now beckon the gelding, who was well ridden by Craig Williams after stepping away slowly.
“We certainly thought he’d be closer than what he was, but he missed away and Craig sorted the rest out,” Busuttin said.
“It was a good tough win. The second horse is a reasonable horse and he hit the front early enough and I thought the second horse was going to get past him but he toughed it out.
“He was five weeks between runs and he’s a keen enough going horse.”
The Gr.2 Autumn Classic (1800m) back at Caulfield in a fortnight shapes as the next likely target before a tilt at either the Gr.1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m) or Gr.2 Alister Clark Stakes (2040m) which are both on March 22.
Noted as a stable that can train a three-year-old stayer, Busuttin said the Kiwi bred had improved significantly since the spring and patience is being rewarded.
“Leading into the spring, he was just a horse,” Busuttin said. “It was time to either race or put him in the paddock and we opted for the latter.
“He has come on big time and he can’t do much more than what he has done, so we will see where he is in a couple of months.”
Bred by Pamela and Katie Hallam’s Yarrawonga Racing, Emphasize was bought out of Castle Hill Farm’s draft at New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Weanling Sale by Inglewood Stud for $5000.
He was subsequently purchased for $75,000 by OTI, Busuttin Racing and Phill Cataldo Bloodstock at the Ready to Run Sale.
By Cambridge Stud stallion Embellish, a Group One winning son of Savabeel, Emphasize is out of the Dane Shadow mare Dancing May, who also has a juvenile Embellish filly, and she is a sister to the Gr.1 South Australian Derby winner Shadows In The Sun.