Group 1 winner Amicus has kicked off her 2015 Spring Carnival campaign in the best way possible this afternoon; completing a strong performance to take out the Group 3 Toy Show Quality (1300m) with ease at Royal Randwick.
Amicus won this afternoon’s Group 3 Toy Show Quality at Royal Randwick. Photo: Steve Hart
Jumping from the gates well, Sydney Premiership-winning jockey Hugh Bowman settled Amicus off the pace of early leaders Il Mio Destino, Two Blue and Echo Gal, who set a reasonable tempo away from the barriers and around the Randwick turn.
Arriving at the final straight blocked for a run and with plenty to do, Bowman weaved the talented daughter of Fastnet Rock between runners before locking in a battle with Echo Gal; comfortably poking clear ahead of the Gai Waterhouse-trained mare and a luckless Wine Tales.
Trainer Chris Waller was on hand for Amicus’s impressive first-up effort for success in the 2015 Toy Show Quality and was quick to lay all the praise on the classy mare and a top ride from Bowman.
“It was very good,” Waller said after the race
“She’s always been a very good horse and obviously a Group 1 winner already.
“She wasn’t beaten very far in the Coolmore against the older mares and it’s just very good to see she’s returned back in this fashion.
“It’s not all about the first-up run, while it’s important but it’s obviously a long road ahead and hopefully we head to Melbourne at the end of the Sydney preparation.”
Waller also saddled the third-placed Wine Tales in the 2015 Toy Show Quality, and was disappointed jockey James McDonald was unable to get the mare to the outside of runners, as she appeared to have the winning turn of foot late in the race.
“She should have come to the outside,” Waller said.
“It’s easy for me because I’ve got the winner, but it’s not as easy for the runners.”
Having revealed he will saddle the mare in a selection of Sydney black type races through the early stages of her Spring Carnival campaign, Waller has aimed Amicus towards the Group 1 Myer Classic (1600m) at Flemington on Derby Day (October 31st).
Punters rallied around Wine Tales in the hours leading up to the 2015 Toy Show Quality, and Amicus was available at a particularly generous quote of $6 for success with Ladbrokes.com.au as a result.
2015 Toy Show Quality Results
| Finish | No. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Bar. | Weight | Starting Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | AMICUS | Chris Waller | Hugh Bowman | – | 6 | 57.5kg | $6 |
| 2 | 7 | ECHO GAL | Gai Waterhouse | Tim Clark | 0.3L | 4 | 57.5kg | $4.60 |
| 3 | 6 | WINE TALES | Chris Waller | James McDonald | 0.8L | 8 | 57.5kg | $3.80F |
| 4 | 8 | MAASTRICHT (NZ) | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Tommy Berry | 2.8L | 5 | 57.5kg | $11 |
| 5 | 4 | FINE BUBBLES | Kris Lees | Brenton Avdulla | 3.6L | 3 | 57.5kg | $18 |
| 6 | 3 | KRISTY LEE | Chris Waller | Tye Angland | 4.3L | 2 | 57.5kg | $7.50 |
| 7 | 1 | TWO BLUE | Kristen Buchanan | Blake Shinn | 5.9L | 1 | 58kg | $6 |
| 8 | 9 | IL MIO DESTINO | Jim Litt | Glen Boss | 6.9L | 7 | 57.5kg | $61 |
