Class sprinter Platinum Attack showed he is right on target for some of the big summer sprints with a comprehensive victory in the Gr.3 Sweynesse Stakes (1215m) at Ellerslie.
The race was held over from the cancelled meeting at Rotorua last Sunday and that suited the Lisa Latta-prepared runner who always goes his best races on good footing which he got at Ellerslie on the Soft 5 rated surface.
With top pilot Opie Bosson on board, the rangy six-year-old gelding settled nicely towards the rear of the field but under a nice grip by Bosson.
Moving into contention around the home bend, Platinum Attack quickly ranged up the leaders at the 250m and put the result beyond doubt as he bounded clear from runner-up Reward Smile and the luckless Jaarffi to win by an increasing two length margin.
With Latta in Sydney with her star four-year-old Platinum Pantheon, co-owner John Street was enjoying congratulations in the winner’s enclosure after the race.
“He is a very good horse who just hasn’t had all the luck with the tracks he has struck and some of the way the races have panned out for him,” Street said.
“We had Opie on board today and he rode him superbly.
“He was the class horse of the field and Opie rode him just like that and he showed what he is capable of when things go his way.”
Street indicated the local Group One sprints coming up would be the target for Platinum Attack although that still had to be discussed with Latta.
“We don’t make any decisions without Lisa being heavily involved as she knows where the horse is at and what he needs to keep him at peak,” he said.
“Races like the Telegraph (Gr.1, 1200m) and the Railway (Gr.1, 1200m) are natural targets while he may also go south for one of the big sprints during New Zealand Cup Week.
“No matter what happens, after 40 years in the game any win is a good one and worth a celebration and that is what we will be doing tonight.”
Bred by Aquis Farm, G1G Racing & Breeding and Fly Horse, Platinum Attack is proving a profitable investment for owners Neville McAlister and Street’s Lincoln Farms Bloodstock who purchased him for $37,000 at the 2021 Gold Coast Weanling Sale, having now won nine of his 25 starts and over $533,000 in prizemoney. - LOVERACING.NZ News Desk
