Patience pays off with late bloomer
GOLD Coast trainer Gillian Heinrich says the late-maturing Captivated is starting to show his potential after his maiden win at Aquis Park.
Heinrich always knew Captivated was never going to race as a two-year-old despite impressing with a second in his first barrier trial at Doomben at the end of 2017.
The stable played the waiting game as Captivated matured and the patience has paid off, with the now threeyear-old winning Saturday’s Maiden Handicap (1200m) at the Gold Coast.
Captivated jumped wide from alley eight and sat with early leader Julianne’s Wish before the $1.85 favourite proved too strong.
The gelding won by a length ahead of Spicer’s Peak and stablemate Depth’s Below, who came within a hand of securing a quinella for Heinrich and training partner Ben Rodgers.
“It was a good win, I was really happy with it,” Heinrich said of a victory that came a fortnight after Captivated finished second on debut at Ipswich.
“His first start was good but he has had natural improvement.
“A little bit of a wet track (on Saturday) maybe didn’t go in his favour. He didn’t mind it but he probably didn’t love it. I think he is going to be a nice little horse and we will have a bit of fun in him.
“He was always immature. He was never going to be a two-year-old. He was a bit leggy and his body hadn’t filled out. All of a sudden the patience is starting to pay off.
“He has filled out and he is starting to look like a racehorse. You couldn’t have run him before. Even though his trials were OK, we didn’t think he was ready to go. He went back to the paddock and let him mature a bit more. We did that a couple of times and now he is … ready to race.”
Captivated was Heinrich and Rodgers’ second winner of the season, while the duo have also had 14 finish in the top three.