Xtravagant Dominates with Fearless Plan

The Informant reports:

Team Te Akau put their reputation on the line at Te Rapa today and came up trumps with a brilliant NRM Sprint win by star colt Xtravagant.

On a raceday dominated by discussions around an over-irrigated and downgraded track, David Ellis, Stephen Autridge, Jamie Richards and Matt Cameron got their heads together and came up with a plan to defy the odds.

What they got was perfection as Cameron bounced Xtravagant from the gates, stayed calm as others took him on and the hugged the rail before racing away to claim the Group One feature by eight lengths.

“After we had walked the track we came up with a fearless plan and with a fearless ride from Matt we got the win,” said Autridge. “It was a gamble but it came off.”

The tightknit group brought in some outside help in the form of Hall of Famer Colin Jillings - co-trainer of 2004 and 2005 winner Sedecrem - who backed their rail-hugging plan after walking the track.

Te Akau principal David Ellis was happy to let everyone at Te Rapa in on the secret when, during the post-race formalities, he revealed Jillings' input.

“After I had walked the track myself I asked Colin to come out with us and see what he thought. ‘Davey boy,' he said, ‘you're right, the rail's not bad at all'.

“So that sealed it, Matt knew what we wanted and he carried it out brilliantly. We figured that after watching the pattern of horses going wide on the turn, if we stuck to the inside they'd think we were idiots and they'd leave us alone.”

Cameron had his own take on what eventuated. “The ground wasn't perfect and he wasn't that comfortable, but it didn't matter,” he said. “He sprinted away from them just like he did in the 2000 Guineas.”

Rival jockey Mark Du Plessis, who got closest on runner-up Vespa, didn't waste words in describing the winner's dominance.

“My horse was good but he had no chance,” he said. “He was beaten by a freak.”

In completing a weight-for-age double by the three-year-olds after Valley Girl had downed Stolen Dance and Kawi in the Gr. 1 Herbie Dyke Stakes,  Xtravagant sealed plans to head to Melbourne for the A$750,000 Australian Guineas at Flemington on March 5.

Vespa will stay close to home for the Gr. 1 Haunui Farm Classic at Otaki in two weeks' time, while Recite breathed new life into her campaign with a late charge wide out into third place.

Last year's winner was brave in fourth place, with his chances not helped when the pace eased through the middle stages, while Natuzzi, the next to finish, didn't have his chances helped when he over-raced behind the steadying pace.