Let Her Rip back after luckless trip

Cambridge trainer Shaune Ritchie was left ruing a tough barrier draw and some unfortunate luck in running after Let Her Rip failed to figure in the finish of Saturday’s Gr. 2 Let’s Elope Stakes at Flemington.

The five-year-old mare was on a hit and run mission in Melbourne to secure some valuable Australian ‘‘black-type’’ to enhance her future breeding prospects.

Those plans turned to custard however when she had to be snagged to the rear of the field from an outside barrier before being badly held up for a run in the home straight.

Although she made up good ground in the final stages it wasn’t enough to trouble the leaders which disappointed Ritchie who felt the daughter of Rip Van Winkle was in the right shape to be competitive in a talented line-up.

‘‘When you draw the extreme outside you are always going to need a lot of luck and we didn’t get that,’’ he said.

The Gr. 3 Taranaki Breeders Stakes at Hawera on October 14 is a likely target for Let Her Rip, a race in which she could clash with Gr. 2 Foxbridge Plate winner Under the moonlight.

Meanwhile Humidor has burst into contention for the spring’s richest races after a last-to-first win in the Makybe Diva Stakes. Jockey Damian Lane produced the Darren Weir-trained stayer as the widest runner in the Flemington straight and the $17 chance overran the favourite Hartnell.

‘‘He’s a great talent and he’s really starting to put it all together now,’’ Lane said.