Talented mare First Chorus ran out a strong winner of the TCL Trophy (1700m) for trainer Lindsey Smith under a perfect ride from a wide draw (15) by Jamie Mott.
Sporting the colours of Spicer Thoroughbreds, First Chorus powered away from her opposition to score by a length and a half to record her third victory from seven starts.
The four-year-old daughter of Ghibellines had previously been runner up at Geelong off a month between runs and had come on in fitness on Thursday.
“The speed was on and Jamie did slot in, it was a great ride,” Smith said. “I told him before the race if he won it, it would be a great ride and take all the accolades, but it wasn’t a bad training effort either!
“No doubt she'll get to 2000m at some stage. Maybe this time next year, she might be in a Matriarch (Gr.2, 2000m) or something like that.”
Mott said earlier in the mare’s career he thought she was somewhat limited in ability but she has continued to raise the bar and improve.
“Lindsey has done a great job with her. She’s built through the grades slowly and each run she’s got better and better,” he said.
“We took her to Geelong last time off a bit of a break and knew she needed a run. She knocked up late.
“She had a nice tick over trial. Fred Kersley gave her a little trial in between and topped her fitness up.
“I got a beautiful spot from the barrier and travelled great and was going to be hard to beat from there.
“She’s had a massive preparation and she’ll continue to get better and better, too.
“She’s a horse who will have a nice future.”
First Chorus was bred by Dean Lawrence with his mother-in-law, Diana Duff-Staniland and Paul Duffus.
First Chorus is a full sister to seven-time winner Bellini Miss, with the pair out of the winning O’Reilly mare Broadway Miss.
She was purchased privately by Brad Spicer of Spicer Thoroughbreds, who has a long-standing relationship with Mott.
“We were really confident until the barrier came out but to Jamie’s credit, it was a huge ride,” Spicer said.
“She can go to the paddock now and come back bigger and better next time around.
“I’m a bit of a fan of the stock of Ghibellines. We had the full sister, Bellini Miss, and when she started showing a bit I went and sourced a full sister, and she looks like she is going to be better.” – NZ Racing Desk
