Bowman’s suspension Boss’s gain in Cox Plate
MELBOURNE: Sir Dragonet won the $A5 million ($NZ5.3 million) Cox Plate at Moonee Valley Racing Club in Melbourne on Saturday, storming clear in the final straight in the 100th running of Australia’s most prestigious weightforage race.
Bought from the stables of Aidan O’Brien especially for a tilt at the 2040m race, the Ciaron Maher and David Eustaceprepared stallion nosed in front 100m from the finish before crossing a length and ahalf in front of O’Brien’s Armory.
Sir Dragonet was rated good enough to start favourite in last year’s English
Derby but finished out of the placings.
Favourite
Russian Camelot ran bravely to take the minor placing to complete a trifecta for northern hemispherebred horses on a gloomy afternoon in Melbourne.
It was a fourth Cox Plate triumph for veteran jockey Glen Boss after winning on Makybe Diva (2005), So You Think (2009) and Ocean Park in 2012.
For Boss, it will go down as his most unexpected after answering an SOS from Sir Dragonet’s owners when Hugh Bowman was suspended.
‘‘They put up a few names and Hughie backed me. He said, ‘Put Bossy on’. And thank God I got the job,’’ he said.
Boss now joins Bowman among a quartet as the Cox Plate’s secondmost successful jockeys behind Darby Munro.
He gave Sir Dragonet a perfect ride, saving ground at every opportunity before latching on to the back of Armory when the sprint went on. Armory was being hailed the winner at the 200m until Boss drove Sir Dragonet between runners and a surge at the 100m put the race beyond doubt.
A threetime Melbourne Cupwinning jockey thanks to the exploits of Makybe Diva,
Boss reckons Sir Dragonet can do it for him again at Flemington.
‘‘He has great form, and he might go a little better in the Melbourne Cup, because he was just starting to get warmed up towards the line.
‘‘The way he gave me a feel today, he might be running in the Melbourne Cup and he might be running very well.’’
The Jamie Richardstrained Probabeel, the only New Zealand runner, finished seventh. — AAP