Warrnambool trainer Symon Wilde had two runners in Saturday’s A$175,000 Deane Lester Flemington Cup (2800m) and came away with a quinella by the Kiwi-bred pair of Hit The Road Jack and Dashing Duchess.
Hit The Road Jack was sent across the Tasman to Wilde’s stable with a jumping future in mind. The Jakkalberry gelding had won seven times from 48 starts on home soil for his former trainer Shaun Phelan, who still retains a share of the ownership. Hit The Road Jack earned more than $245,000 in stakes in that New Zealand career, which also included fifth placings in the Gr.2 Avondale Cup (2400m) and Gr.3 New Zealand Cup (3200m).
An eye-catching fourth at $61 odds when he made his Australian debut at Caulfield in late June, Hit The Road Jack switched to hurdling and made a perfect start in that role with a four-length maiden win at Warrnambool on July 7.
Wilde brought Hit The Road Jack back to the flat at Flemington on Saturday, and his superior stamina shone through in a powerful Flemington Cup performance.
Presented at the top of the straight by rider Michael Dee, Hit The Road Jack strode forward and swept past the leader Taramansour.
The biggest challenge came from his stablemate Dashing Duchess, who fought back gallantly on his inside, but Hit The Road Jack edged ahead of her and won by three-quarters of a length.
“He’s a great old campaigner,” Dee said. “He’s been around the traps all around New Zealand. I watched some replays from in New Zealand, where he would often take off mid-race and just keep going.
“The key today was to keep him in a position where he could work into it. He made easy work of it. I think he almost thought his job was done at the 200m and was waiting for them a little bit. It was a great effort.”
The seven-year-old chestnut has now had 51 starts for nine wins, 14 placings and A$356,803.
“It’s great to get a city Saturday quinella,” Wilde’s racing manager Ben Casanelia said. “The team thought both of those horses would run well today.
“The winner came across from New Zealand, originally on a jumps path. He probably surprised a few people with his open handicap run at Caulfield in his first start for us, and then he won that maiden hurdle with a leg in the air.
“I think that the wetter it got today, the more his chances were enhanced. He’s a typical, tough New Zealander. He got into a good spot and had momentum at the right time.
“I think there was a hurdle race in mind for him after this, but now we might find another race on the flat instead. I’ll leave that up to Symon.
“A couple of his owners came across from New Zealand to watch him today. They were thrilled to have a runner at Flemington, let alone a winner, so it’s a fantastic result for them.”
Bred by Novara Park principal Luigi Muollo under his Explosive Breeding banner, Hit The Road Jack is one of three winners out of the Istidaad mare Ististar, whose 10 wins in her own racetrack career included the Gr.3 Cuddle Stakes (1600m), Listed Rotorua Stakes (1400m) and two editions of the Tauranga Classic (1400m).
Novara Park offered Hit The Road Jack at the 2017 National Weanling Sale at Karaka, where he failed to meet his $5000 reserve.
Meanwhile, Saturday’s runner-up Dashing Duchess is by Tavistock out of the Red Ransom mare Charlotte Russe. She was offered by Westbury Stud in Book 1 of Karaka 2021, where she was passed in with an $80,000 reserve.
Dashing Duchess has had 10 starts for four wins, three placings and A$151,340.
“She has a good future as a stayer,” Casanelia said. “She ran really well for seventh in the Andrew Ramsden (Listed, 2800m) earlier in this campaign.
“We’ve got a lot to look forward to with her. She’s still got plenty of improvement.”