Trainer Joe Pride celebrated his third win in the G2 Iron Jack Missile S. at Rosehill on Saturday, but this one was something a little different.
Pride’s previous victories in the $200,000 early season sprint came with the long-time stable favourite Rain Affair (Commands), who won it in 2011 and 2013.
This time it was Eduardo, who was making only his second start for the stable.
The chestnut gelding began his career with Sarah Zschoke, for whom he won three races including the G2 Caulfield Sprint and ran a close third in the G1 Oakleigh Plate.
Eduardo’s form tailed off in the early part of this year, and a change in ownership saw him relocate to Sydney to join the Pride stable.
Joe Pride
He made a winning start from his new quarters at Rosehill late last month, and on Saturday he made it two in a row with an outstanding all-the-way win.
“He was very good,” Pride said. “Nash (Rawiller) said before the race that he’d rather have the chasers come at him with 100 metres to go than be flying at him late, and that’s how it panned out. He’s recognised that this is a horse who has a lot of fight in him.
“He can make his luck by racing on the speed, and then he’s still got a good kick at the end of the race. He’s certainly enthusiastic about the whole thing, it looks like he runs along for fun.
"He’s certainly enthusiastic about the whole thing, it looks like he runs along for fun." - Joe Pride
“He’s a 7-year-old now, but in real terms he’s probably much younger than that. He wasn’t broken in until he was three. He’s still got plenty of racing left in him.”
Eduardo made an immediate impact on Saturday’s race with an explosive burst of speed inside the first 50 metres.
He was never headed from there, fighting off all challenges down the straight to win by 1.5l from Flit (Medaglia D’Oro {USA}).
“What he did coming out of the gates today, that wins races,” Rawiller said. “He showed excellent speed early and got into his comfort zone really quickly. He’s really got a motor and I love his cruising speed.
“He might have got a bit lost in the straight, but when I got stuck into him in the last 150 metres, he let down well and was strong right to the line.”
Eduardo was bred by Victorian hobby breeder Jane Kaufmann, who has retained a share of the ownership. The speedy gelding has now had 14 starts for five wins, five placings and $476,900 in stakes.
A mountain to climb
Having passed his first black-type test for his new stable with flying colours, Eduardo could raise the bar even further in the spring, with Pride even mentioning the $15 million The Everest at Randwick on October 17.
“I’d love an Everest slot for him,” he said. “I think he’s a really good sprinter. He’s shown that in his two starts here. He’s adaptable – he took a sit in his first win, then led today.”
Eduardo
Meanwhile, Flit’s trainer James Cummings was far from disappointed in the resuming run from last season’s G1 Thousand Guineas winner.
“Brilliant return from Flit, but a clever ride from the winner,” he said.
Ten-time Group 1 winner Melody Belle (NZ) (Commands) finished at the tail of the field, but jockey Kerrin McEvoy expects her to take significant improvement from the run.
"I thought she still ran fine," he said. "She pulled up having a nice blow. She just found that race a little bit sharp for her given the circumstances."
