Trainer Gordon Richards has been enjoying a great run of late but he was hardly the punters pin-up boy when his 6yo Ilovethiscity gelding Chapel City chose his 46th start to earn his maiden stakes win as the despised $101 outsider.
It came in Saturday’s Group III RA Lee Stakes (1600m) at Morphettville.
With Georgina Cartwright in the saddle, Chapel Hill defied the favoured pair of Seabrook and Harbour Views.
Forty minutes earlier Cartwright had won the Listed Centaurea Stakes on Oasis Girl (Redoute’s Choice) for Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra.
“Even though the horse was big odds, the Gordon Richards stable is in hot form,” Cartwright told racing.com.
“He actually surprised me to be honest. He was having a step up in grade from last start, but surprised me with the turn of foot he showed.”
Chapel City had only ever contested three previous stakes races, two of them three years ago and one two years back with his best result coming when third in the Listed Adelaide Guineas in 2017.
His overall record however stands at a praiseworthy 8 wins, 8 seconds and 8 thirds from 49 starts with earnings of $441,465.
Purchased by his trainer for $35,000 out of the Dingellydell draft at the 2015 MM Adelaide Yearling Sale, Chapel City is the best of seven winners from as many to race out of the Peintre Celebre mare Chapent an unraced half-sister to Listed winner Chading (Marauding).
Chapent has an unraced 2yo Puissance De Lune filly named Peaches De Lune, a yearling filly by Stratum Star, who was purchased by Gordon Richards for just $16,000 at this years Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling sale.
After foaling a colt by Ilovethiscity last spring, Chapent was bred back to Puissance De Lune.
Chapel City becomes the fourth stakes-winner for the Randwick Guineas winner Ilovethiscity who stood at Noor Elaine Farm in 2019 at a fee of $5,500.
