There were jubilant scenes at Gloucester Park on Friday night when a band of first-time pacing owners cheered five-year-old Major Artist all the way down the home straight on the way to a convincing victory in the 2096m TABtouch.com.au Pace.
Shannon Suvaljko had jumped in front with Major Artist from the inside of the front line in the standing-start event and he dictated terms to a nicety in guiding the solidly-built gelding to a 2m win over the fast-finishing $26 outsider Disco Under Fire.
Major Artist went into the race with a losing sequence of 17 and was having his third start for his new trainer Luke Edwards, who bought the gelding for $22,000 from his breeder Terry Ferguson on behalf of ten first-time owners, including his mother, Lisa.
“They bought a couple of yearlings at the sales earlier this year, and after they had been broken in and I explained that they couldn’t race until next January I suggested that they get a horse who is up and going,” said Edwards.
“I picked out Major Artist because I liked his three-year-old campaign when he was racing against some good horses like Cangue Reale. I have always liked the horse from afar.”
Major Artist, by Art Major, is out of Art On The Beach, who finished third behind Theo Aviator in the Group 2 Three-Year-Old Pearl in May 2019.
by Ken Casellas