It was a winning double for jockey Casey Hunter and trainer Phil Cole during the five-event card at Darwin on Friday.
Hunter won the opening two races aboard Del Viento and Saccharo, while Cole had success with Saccharo and Brazenpine.
Cole had four of the six runners in the feature race – a $23,100 open handicap over 1200m – and claimed the trifecta with Saccharo ($14), Vunivalu ($2.40 fav) and Cielo D’Oro ($6.50).
Saccharo, the winner of Queensland’s Birdsville Cup (1600m) and Bedourie Cup (1600m) in 2022, returned from a four-month spell on Australia Day to finish fourth in open company over 1300m behind Mr Cashman, a combatant on Friday.
The seven-year-old gelding, a winner at Flemington in January 2021, was well adrift of the field along the back straight before producing a stirring finish despite carrying 61.5kg to make it two wins from seven Darwin starts.
Vunivalu (Emma Lines), a last start winner, jumped to the early lead and led his rivals a merry dance, but with 200m to go he was labouring as Saccharo, who never left the fence, continued to make ground to prevail by just under a length.
Cielo D’Oro (Wayne Davis) was sitting fourth behind stablemate Mini Boom (Ianish Luximon) and Gary Clarke’s Mr Cashman (Jarrod Todd) rounding the home turn before pursuing Vunivalu, which proved fruitless as he finished three lengths behind Saccharo in third place.
She only has five horses in her stable, but trainer Chloe Baxter made it five wins from 19 starts when four-year-old gelding Del Viento ($5.50) blitzed his rivals in a 1000m maiden.
Del Viento arrived in the Top End after having nine starts for Wangaratta trainer Ben Brisbourne with his best effort a last start third in a 1000m maiden at Hanging Rock on New Year’s Day.
It’s usually hit and miss for new arrivals, but the former Victorian galloper settled on the rails and allowed Cole’s Laylah’s Wish (Lines) to take a narrow lead.
They skipped away from Tom Logan’s $1.65 favourite Beau Flyer (Sonja Wiseman) down the side before Baxter’s charger accelerated at the 350m once turning for home.
Beau Flyer, one other new arrival from Queensland who hadn’t raced since October, couldn’t bridge the gap with Del Viento easing up at the line to win by seven lengths in a dominant NT debut.
Bluffed (Jade Hampson), an $11 hope from the Peter Stennett yard, worked home nicely from the rear for third, but he was a further 5.5 lengths adrift of Beau Flyer.
Baxter kicked off her training career last June and had already celebrated three wins with To The Point and two wins with First Crusade.
Cole’s Brazenpine (Lines) continued her trend of saluting every second race by defeating Clarke’s Papalet (Todd) over 1000m (0-64) in Heat 6 of the Summer Sprint Series.
The six-year-old mare, formerly trained by Peter and Paul Snowden at Randwick, arrived in the Top End last year and was spelled after finishing sixth twice in January before returning in November for a third over 1000m (0-58).
A win followed over 1000m (0-58) before a ninth over 1100m (0-64) with Brazenpine then winning again over 1000m (BM54) before coming fifth over 1000m (0-64) on Australia Day.
Starting as the $2.15 favourite in the five-horse field, Brazenpine took a sit along the rails behind the leader Papalet ($3.70) and Chris Pollard’s Dream Chance (Stan Tsaikos) before making her move at the 400m.
Once straightening for home, Brazenpine (54kg) continued to make ground on Papalet (59.5kg), who started to drift wide under pressure, before claiming victory by half a length.
Clarke’s $13 prospect Captain Hedderwick (Hunter), a clear last after 200m, rallied late and although 6.5 lengths adrift of the leading pair finished third after edging out Cole’s in-form Colhoun (Davis).
For 16-year-old Lines, it was her fifth win in 32 starts after debuting in December and she has skipped two wins clear of Hampson as the leading Top End apprentice.
It wasn’t Bonecrusher battling it out with Our Waverley Star, but in a feisty battle down the home straight Jo Banks’ Sweet Cheval (Davis) left it late before pipping Cole’s Meadows Young Buck (Lines) over 1600m (0-76).
Sweet Cheval, a five-year-old gelding, is the only horse in the Banks stable and he made it two wins from his last three starts after winning his first three Darwin races in 2021.
Finishing fourth over 1200m (0-70) a week ago, Sweet Cheval ($9) was backing up for the third straight week after saluting over 1200m (BM54) on February 4.
Meadows Young Buck ($3.90), desperately unlucky to lose to Mark Nyhan’s Halogem seven days prior after leading most of the way, experienced a similar fate on Friday when he rolled to the front at the start to set the tempo once turning into the back straight.
Clarke’s Raazou (Todd) and Sweet Cheval kept him honest and Baxter’s To The Point (Hampson) and Nyhan’s Against The Tide (Hunter) weren’t far away, while Halogem (Wiseman) was typically well adrift.
Little changed turning for home, but just as Raazou ($2.60 fav) made a move Meadows Young Buck held firm and that long-awaited win at Fannie Bay seemed possible although Sweet Cheval kept plugging away.
Having been placed in five of his seven starts in Darwin since last August, Meadows Young Buck couldn’t hang on with Sweet Cheval prevailing by a head – with Halogem ($3.30) almost 10 lengths away in third place.
Sweet Chavel may not have won a race in NSW before relocating to the NT, but he was placed three times in five starts, and in 15 starts at Fannie Bay he has now been placed on 10 occasions.
After three straight seconds at Fannie Bay, Pollard’s Lucky Dog (Tsaikos) finally saluted with an impressive win over fast-finishing stablemate Lockdown Sally (Hunter) over 1100m (0-58).
The former SA galloper had finished second four times in his last five Darwin starts, but the five-year-old gelding was always a chance after impressing in the $40,000 Wet Season Series Final (1200m) on Australia Day when he made the big jump to 0-70 class before coming second behind Zoumist.
Lucky Dog jumped from barrier 10 that day with Tsaikos aboard and lumped 54.5kg, but despite dropping in grade on Friday and drawing gate four he had to carry an extra 4.5kg.
Tsaikos camped Lucky Dog ($4.20) along on the rails in fourth place as Clarke’s Henestrosa (Luximon) led comfortably from Logan’s $3.60 favourite Ye Hella (Wiseman) and Pollard’s other runner Stars The Limit (Davis).
There were chances abound turning for home as Cole’s Courageous Hearts (Lines) and Clarke’s Chief Mondo (Todd) joined the fray, but NT debutante Ye Hella was still Henestrosa’s biggest threat.
Lucky Dog, a winner of three races at Oakbank, continued to bridge the gap along the fence and looked the likely winner with 200m to go.
Lockdown Sally ($51) came hurtling down the outside from the back of the field with Hunter missing out on a treble by 0.4 lengths, while Henestrosa ($13) did a good job to hang on for third.
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