Not a lot went right for Steparty in Saturday’s Neds Caulfield Guineas Prelude (1400m), but the son of Artie Schiller (USA) does not know the meaning of defeat.
With just one of the nine runners behind him 250m out, the Paul Preusker-trained phenomenon dug deep to chase down Southport Tycoon (Written Tycoon) for an unlikely short-head triumph and stretch his unbeaten record to five.
Southport Tycoon lost his unbeaten record but went down fighting. He inched out the highly promising Justify colt Scentify, with the Real Steel colt Scheelite doing his best work at the finish to set up what promises to be an exciting Caulfield Guineas.
“It was great to see him relax. Johnny gave him the opportunity for that,” Paul Preusker said.
“He’s got a boom turn of foot. I’ve seen it over the years, for me at my farm, I haven’t seen a horse with a 400 (metres) on him like this fella. It was good to see it used today, a bit of pressure, and he stood up.”
“The harder it’s run, the more brutal the race, the more he stands up and puts his hand up.
“Today was about, for me mentally, do I go back and change anything. I’m pretty confident that I don’t.”
John Allen said Steparty had to do it the hard way.
“I thought it was a good win to be honest,” Allen said.
“He began well enough, and they hunted up inside me, and I didn’t want to fire him up too much because he’s got bigger targets in a few weeks time.
“I elected to come back on him and then I was probably too negative on him and I got too far out of my ground, but he was good. He came back, relaxed for me and then we had to get going. They didn’t go over quick and they got racing early and he had to make a long run and thankfully he was good enough.
“I liked that last furlong. He was entitled to empty when they came to him, but when he heard that horse coming outside him, he put his head down and really found the line. It was a good one to win.”
Steparty has banked $537,015 from his five wins.
A half-brother to Group III Red Anchor Stakes runner-up and $1,000,000 The Showdown third, Scissor Step (Toronado), Steparty is a homebred for Greg Baldwin and partners.
The son of Artie Schiller is the second winner from as many to race for Watch Your Step, which Baldwin purchased from Mick Leonard’s Millwater Farm, who paid $13,000 for the unraced daughter of Sepoy from the Contract Racing draft at the 2019 Great Southern Sale when carrying a filly by Adelaide.
Watch Your Step has a 2yo filly by Rich Enufff and was covered by Fierce Impact (JPN) last spring.
