Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
Consistent six-year-old High Price, the $2.90 favourite, raced keenly and gave master reinsman Chris Lewis a tough assignment to rate the gelding in the breeze before revealing excellent fighting qualities to hold on and win narrowly from El Chema ($6) and Ima Fivestar General ($5.50) in the $31,000 Catalano Truck And Equipment Sales Kenwick Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
High Price pulled hard in the score-up and was restrained at the start before Lewis gave him his head to dash forward in the early stages to race outside the frontrunning $5.50 chance Hoppys Way, who had charged straight to the front from the No. 7 barrier.
“He raced keenly but I was happy as long as I could keep him back (without racing alongside Hoppys Way),” said Lewis. “I thought the sectionals were pretty good and when the late challenges were coming, he still had something left. He grows a leg when horses come at him.”
High Price fought on tigerishly to beat El Chema by a half-neck, with Ima Fivestar general just a head away in third place. High Price rated 1.57.2 after final 800m of 56.2sec.
The son of former brilliant pacer Alta Christiano, High Price has earned $167,231 from eleven wins and 22 placings. He has been most consistent since being prepared at Northam by trainer Garry Sayers, with his 26 starts for him producing four wins and twelve placings.