Spirit is back to beat odds
SATURDAY, MARCH 16, 2019 themercury.com.au SUBSCRIPTIONS 1300 696 397 WHEN former star Tasmanian juvenile pacer Resurgent Spirit powered home to cause a shock win in the second heat of the Tasmania Cup in Hobart last week, he emerged as a genuine chance to win tonight’s final.
Resurgent Spirit was given a gun run in his heat by talented reinsman Alex Ashwood, who had the Kate Hargreavestrained gelding perfectly positioned in the one-out line with cover until they hit the home straight.
When Ashwood called on Resurgent Spirit to dig deep he slipped into overdrive and motored to the line to defeat Sicario and race leader War Dan.
Resurgent Spirit’s ownerbreeder Roger Whitmore said after the race that their decision to bring the horse back to the state for the Tasmania Cup was made some time ago.
“He might have started at big odds in his heat but we knew he wasn’t here just to make up numbers,” Whitmore said. “The horse has pulled up great from the run and I’m expecting another good effort.
“Being drawn on the outside of the 10-metre line makes it hard, but should he get a similar type of run as he did in the heat then they will know he is about.”
Resurgent Spirit has already been specked at odds firming from his opening price of $15 into $14 but remains at good each-way value.
This year’s Cup has assembled a quality field of 14 and the evenness of the line-up is reflected in the betting which sees the Brent Lilley stable’s Sicario, with Gavin Lang in the sulky, favourite at $3.20 ahead of heat one winner Scooterwillrev at $3.60.
Scooterwillrev was very impressive in winning his heat and now that he has come to terms with standing starts he would only need to step cleanly from gate three on the front row to make his presence felt at the business end of the race.
Last season’s Easter Cup and Raider Stakes winner Harjeet was second to Scooterwillrev in their heat and the Todd Rattray-trained gelding lost no admirers.
Harjeet will start off the equal back-mark of 30m, but he has to be considered a great each-way hope at $6.
War Dan has draw gate five so he might try and lead so Scooterwillrev won’t have it all his own way.
And to make it even more interesting the David Aikentrained Shelby Bromac has drawn in between that pair and he too has a lot of early speed. Sicario starts off a 10m handicap, but he began so quickly off that mark in his heat that he was up vying for the lead by the time the field had travelled about 200m in Hobart last week.
He faced the breeze outside of the Dean Braun-trained War Dan and did a good job to stick on as he did.