Shamus heads superb Sharrock stakes double
Yesterday’s Group 2 Wellington Guineas (1400m) at Trentham was a sink-or-swim moment for unbeaten 3-year-old Shamus, and he rose to the challenge in superb style.
Trained by Allan Sharrock in New Plymouth for his long-time clients Noel and Ron Stanley, the son of Shamexpress had made a big impression with dominant victories in each of his first three appearances.
But yesterday’s Guineas was on a different level to anything he had come up against before, sampling the black-type waters for the first time and facing the likes of Group 2 winner Pareanui Bay and Group 1 placegetter Shepherd’s Delight. It was the first real test of where Shamus stood among this season’s elite 3-year-olds, and his performance left no doubt.
“He’s a serious racehorse,” said Sharrock. “This was the race where he had to put his hand up, and he’s done that. He’s put his hand up and said, ‘I’m the man.’ He knows he’s a good horse, he’s got a bit of a swagger.
“The Stanleys have already turned down a lot of money for this horse, and I think he’s worth even more money now.”
Patiently ridden by Hazel Schofer, Shamus settled towards the back of the Guineas field, biding his time along the rail as Sassy Merlot set a strong tempo.
Hot favourite Pareanui Bay travelled well behind the leader coming up to the turn and looked the winner at the top of the straight, but that all changed when Schofer presented Shamus to the outside and let him rip. The gelding came with giant strides out wide and swept past Pareanui Bay to win by a length, with Sassy Merlot holding on gamely for third.
“I didn’t really want to be on the rail, but he was always going to get back and that was just where I ended up,” Schofer said. “I had a heap of horse under me, and I had enough room to get him out and let him down in the straight.”
One race later, the application of blinkers to last season’s Group 3 Wellington Cup (3200m) winner Waisake did exactly what Sharrock had hoped they would as the laidback customer found a new lease of life to take out the Group 3 Trentham Stakes (2100m).
Sharrock has been slowly putting the miles into the legs of the 7-yearold son of Zed as he worked him to peak fitness in a bid to defend his Wellington Cup crown in a fortnight.
Four starts in his current campaign had seen Waisake running on late over a variety of distances without troubling the placings.
Sharrock rolled the dice yesterday, and despite settling last for rider Craig Grylls, Waisake looked a different horse as he grabbed the bit turning for home and producing a powerful late charge to defeat House Of Cartier and Mohaka in a thrilling finish.
“He’s been going all right all season, but we probably have been trying to beat the handicapper [for the Wellington Cup weight] and we’ve ended up with 59kg anyway,” Sharrock said.
“That was pretty special, as that was a tidy Trentham Stakes field. I said to Gryllsy if he could run top five, I’d be happy, so I’m ecstatic now.
“The aim all year has been the Wellington Cup, but where we go after that is still to be seen. He could go to the Sydney Cup [Group 1, 3200m] as I have Our Hail Mary and Sinarahma for the Auckland Cup [Group 2, 3200m], so we might just split paths.”