State Of Rest wins Cox Plate after protest fails
Australia’s most prestigious weight-or-age race has been decided in the stewards room with Irish raider State Of Rest winning the $5.4 million Cox Plate after surviving a protest.
State Of Rest edged out Anamoe to be first across the line after a stirring duel in the Moonee Valley straight yesterday.
But Anamoe’s jockey Craig Williams claimed interference over the final stages cost the 3-year-old certain victory in a brilliant weight-for-age contest.
The winning margin in favour of State Of Rest was a long head.
Williams fired in a protest with the hearing lasting more than 20 minutes before stewards dismissed his objection.
In a race that changed complexion on the home turn, State Of Rest charged to the lead only for Anamoe to trail through underneath.
State Of Rest shifted his ground toward the rail, hampering Anamoe, but stewards found the interference was not enough to change the result.
The victory continued young Irish trainer’s Joseph O’Brien’s love affair with Australian racing.
He joins his father Aidan O’Brien as a Cox Plate-winning trainer while the 29-year-old has also led in two Melbourne Cup winners.
The race was robbed of a major drawcard when early hot favourite Zaaki was scratched because of an elevated temperature.
Kiwi-owned hope Verry Elleegant was a bold third in a great trial for the Melbourne Cup, with Kiwi-bred Mo’unga fourth and Kiwi-trained Callsign Mav (fifth) and Probabeel (sixth).
Irish rider John Allen said it was a nerve-wracking wait in the stewards room.
“The longer it was going, there were definitely a few anxious moments, but I think the right decision was made,” Allen said.
“The race panned out pretty well. Probably when the gap appeared I had to ask him to improve quick before it closed. We might have got there a little too soon, but to his credit, when that horse [Anamoe] got to him, he really fought and was good and solid to the line.”
The depth of the three-year-old talent in the Te Akau Racing team was clearly on display yesterday, with trainer Jamie Richards producing black-type victories at both Matamata and Riccarton yesterday.
Richards swept all before him last season, winning the trainers’ premiership with 160 wins, of which 36 were at stakes level.
He has started to hit his straps in recent weeks and went into overdrive with a winning treble on his home patch at Matamata that he then matched at Riccarton, making for a remarkable six local wins on the day.
Amongst those victories were feature race wins at both venues with 3-year-old filly Imperatriz overcoming a tardy start to take out the G3 Soliloquy Stakes (1400m), before just 20 minutes later, stablemate Noverre showed he will be a massive chance in next month’s G1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) after storming home to capture the G3 War Decree Stakes (1600m) at Riccarton.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for Imperatriz, with the daughter of I Am Invincible rearing at the start and settling well off the pace for rider Danielle Johnson before improving along the rail approaching the home bend.
Johnson angled the filly to the middle of the track and she let down with a determined finish to take out the event, her fourth win from just five starts.
‘‘The team is starting to come right now, after a wet, cold spring and the tracks have taken a long time to come right too,’’ Richards said.
‘‘I feel like we’re getting there now and the stable has had a great day.
Luck deserted Richards in Australia with sustained rain at Moonee Valley significantly affecting track conditions which didn’t suit Probabeel as she battled into fifth in the Cox Plate (2040m). A wide barrier draw also put paid to the chances of exciting Tavistock mare Entriviere in the inaugural running of the $2m The Invitation (1400m) at Randwick, where rider Tommy Berry was trapped wide before moving forward to sit outside the leader and only fading in the final 100m to finish fourth.
Class 3-year-old colt Forgot You may have given favourite backers heart palpitations, but his quality shone through late as he overhauled stablemate Commander Harry in the shadows of the post to win the G2 $326K Vase (2040m) at Moonee Valley.
Expat Kiwi trainers Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young celebrated a notable quinella, with Savabeel colt Forgot You likely to start a warm favourite in next week’s VRC Derby (2500m).
Forgot You, who was ridden by Daniel Moor, remains in the acceptances for the Melbourne Cup (3200m). Cambridge-trained Elephant earlier ran a close third in the $326K Crystal Mile.