Preusker’s hot streak
Horsham horse trainer Paul Preusker’s hot streak continued at the weekend with back-to-back wins in the Ararat Gold Cup and the China Bowl on Sunday.
Preusker was fresh from a successful outing at the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday last week when five-year-old gelding Surprise Baby ran fifth, netting $230,000 prize money in the process.
Preusker’s luck held up during the weekend meet at Ararat, with Stealthy Lucas sneaking home in a photo finish from the Dean Yendall ridden Tre Dieci in the $70,000 feature race.
The five-year-old was fourth at the turn but powered down the straight to pip Tre Dieci on the line.
Preusker followed it half an hour later with another win in the $82,000 China Bowl as fouryear-old Marcel From Madrid finished too strongly for rivals Revlis and Jester Halo, scoring by half a length in the 1300-metre sprint.
Marcel From Madrid is owned by the Pacific Bloodstock syndicate.
Part owner and former Ararat resident Mark Hoare said it was great to see his horse get up in his home town.
“There’s two of us from Ararat in the group – Anne Laidlaw from the famous Laidlaw family is also a part owner,” he said.
“We’re both pretty happy, as the whole ownership group is, to win a nice race like the China Bowl.”
Mr Hoare said Marcel From Madrid had a bright future ahead under Preusker.
“He was a $57,000 yearling out of the Classic Yearling Sale in Sydney,” he said.
“He’s a half-brother of Levendi, who won the Australian Derby, and Wu Gok, who won the Wyong Cup.
“He’s got a very good pedigree and his mother sold for $1.6-million last year.
“He won a group-three race in Adelaide as a two-year-old and he won the National Stakes and then the wheels fell off. He’s now back on track and Paul has, one tile at a time, put him back together.”
Preusker said he was pleased with his run of success but would take a break in New Zealand next week.
“We were banking on quality coming through, and that’s what happened today,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to getting to New Zealand and putting my feet up for a bit and trying to buy another horse.”
Preusker praised the state of the Ararat track, saying it had made for ideal racing conditions.
“We were on a beautiful face,” he said.
“It makes a big difference to the horse and lets us get them home sound.” sur