Trainer Patrick Payne will hold bragging rights over brother Andrew, as the siblings supplied the first two runners home in The Stud and Stable Staff Awards (2000m) at Flemington when Bold Soul (NZ) (Embellish) held sway over Crossoverkid (Alpine Eagle) on Saturday.
In a slowly-run race, it was the mid-race move of jockey Daniel Stackhouse that ultimately paid dividends on the three-year-old son of Embellish.
Bold Soul settled third last before Stackhouse made a mid-race move to sit in second spot and he held a strong gallop in the straight to defy his opposition.
“He was just starting to get a bit aggressive when the tempo came out of the race and no one really wanted to go,” Stackhouse said.
“Instead of fighting my bloke – I was probably using more carrots doing that than making up ground and doing no work. We got to the outside of the leader very easily without spending any pennies and he found a lot better rhythm and he was able to flow into it.
“He took a while to build through his gears but I always felt I had the horse to the inside of me covered and he is going to be a nice horse when he gets over further too.
“He’s still a young horse and is very green and raw and needs to learn to switch off a bit more but that was his first time at 2000m and that tempo was pretty ridiculous to be honest, hence he was a bit keen.
“He has looked like he was a bit green at his last couple of starts but he was really switched on today and he travelled strongly to the gates. He knew his job and I think with more racing, the better he will be and Patrick Payne will put the x-factor on him.”
Bold Soul has now won two of his four starts, having won at Donald on debut before having excuses on both occasions when finishing third at consecutive starts at Caulfield prior to the Flemington win.
Payne has now won the last three editions of the Flemington race, with subsequent Group One winner Dunkel (NZ) (Dundeel) successful last year, while handy stayer The Cunning Fox (NZ) (Reliable Man) won in 2022.
By Cambridge Stud’s Group One winning son of Savabeel Embellish, Bold Soul is the last foal of the now retired Singspiel mare Twin Soul and was bred by Lou Te Keeti.
Bold Soul was sold at New Zealand Bloodstock’s Book 2 Yearling Sale for $20,000 to Wanganui horseman Hamish Auret and subsequently relocated to Payne’s Victorian operation.
Embellish is represented by 17 yearlings at the forthcoming New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sales, with one Book 1 representative and 16 in Book 2.
