GRAND TETON STUNS FIELD
Katherine Cup victory for outsider
GARRY Lefoe Jr admitted he gave up all hope of Grand Teton winning the $30,000 Katherine Cup (1700m) early in the race.
His five-year-old hit the front shortly after the first turn and produced a stunning run – with veteran jockey Wayne Davis in the saddle – to win a Katherine Cup featuring one of the best fields in recent years.
Gary Clarke’s Kifaah (jockey Richie Oakford) finished a length and a half behind in second.
“After how hard he worked early, I didn’t think he could win,” Lefoe Jr told the Sunday Territorian after his horse prevailed in a time of 1 min 41.52 sec.
“I thought ‘ he’s finally got to the front and he’ll be gassed by the time he gets around the (final) corner’.”
But Davis’ confidence in the $10.50 outsider never wavered after rounding the first turn out wide from barrier 10, before some brilliant jockey work got him closer to the rail.
“Sure, I was posted deep but I was always creeping forward. It’s all about having a horse which is comfortable in his rhythm,” Davis said.
“If you’re trapped deep it’s no use pulling their heads off and bringing them unbalanced and having them where they don’t want to be. It’s better to keep them in their rhythm, and every now and then just slide forward a bit.
“He got across to the fence and was able to have a good breather. No one flushed him out early.”
Grand Teton showed incredible stamina to keep his opponents at bay.
“He was able to dictate terms once he got a couple of good sectionals and I really pulled the trigger about the 500m mark,” Davis said.
“He had no weight (55kg) on his back. He had a good mid-race breather and the competition had to get to him at the business end of the race.
“But they were never going to get past him. I was very confident at the 200m mark because he gave a kick on the corner and one horse rallied at him but he shook it off.”
Lefoe Jr got the reward he deserved with his gelding who did not record a win during the Darwin Cup Carnival.
“I’m really happy for the horse because he kept drawing outside barriers during the Darwin Carnival,” he said.
“I’m over the moon. It was a great ride from Wayne.
“Gladdy (jockey and good mate Kim Gladwin) pulled up a bit crook today and he couldn’t take the ride.… it’s unfortunate for him, but he’ll be very happy for the horse.”
“He had a good mid-race breather” WAYNE DAVIS