Emerging filly Talkanco ($3.70) proved too strong when it mattered most, surging through a narrow gap to claim victory in the Group 2 Karrakatta Plate (1200m) at Ascot on Saturday.
Trained by Daniel and Ben Pearce and ridden perfectly by Brad Parnham, Talkanco justified the stable’s long-held confidence, capping off a stellar preparation with a dominant grand final performance.
After settling just behind the speed, Parnham was able to pick his way through runners turning for home, with the filly charging to the front inside the final 100m.
Just Too Fly ($2.30) flashed home along the fence but came up short by just under a length, while Snitzilate ($15) was brave running third after looming ominously at the top of the straight.
Early favourite horse racing bookmakers, Yes Queen ($2.30), loomed as a winning chance but peaked late to finish fourth.
2025 Group 2 Karrakatta Plate Replay – Talkanco
“She’s just a filly that keeps improving,” said co-trainer Daniel Pearce post-race.
“It’s a huge result for our stable, and credit to the team and the owners. It’s massive for us.”
It was a richly deserved victory for Talkanco, who had been narrowly beaten by Yes Queen earlier in the season before turning the tables in the Gimcrack Stakes, and again here on WA’s biggest juvenile stage.
The win also marked a second Karrakatta Plate success for the Pearce brothers after Dig Deep in 2019.
For Brad Parnham, it was a long-awaited feature win.
“It’s been a while between drinks in the big ones,” he said.
“She dug in really well. Once the gap opened on the turn, she was too good.”
The daughter of I’m All The Talk has now banked more than $500,000 in prizemoney from just five starts and looks poised for further success over longer trips, with the WA Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) a logical next target.
“She’s running out her races so strongly now,” Parnham added.
“If she pulls up well, she’ll be hard to beat again.”
Talkanco has firmly stamped herself as one of WA’s premier two-year-olds, and Saturday’s gritty performance only reinforced that reputation.
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