Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
New South Wales-bred seven-year-old Sangue Reale has struck a purple patch and is racing with youthful enthusiasm — and he completed a winning hat-trick when he scored a splendid victory in fast time in the 2130m The Countryman Free-For-All at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Trainer-reinsman Chris Voak was thrilled with the performance and is full of hope that Sangue Reale will earn a start in the $450,000 TABtouch WA Pacing Cup next Friday night.
Sangue Reale was No. 23 on the third rankings list for the Cup before the race and should move up several placings, with Voak saying: “He should catapult ahead of some of the horses ahead of him in the ratings.
“That run tonight gives me hope of getting a start in the Cup. He won’t just be making up the numbers, and with the right trip, he’s a player. He rated 1.53 over the 2130m, and that is the fastest rate in a Free-For-All at Gloucester Park over the past three months.
“The 2936m of the Pacing Cup won’t bother him. He has won a Group 1 event over 2536m as a four-year-old. We went extremely hard the whole way tonight (35.3sec. lead time followed by quarters of 29.3sec., 28.3sec., 27.7sec. and 29sec.).
“I thought that the pace was going to be set up for a swooper. But Sangue Reale just cruised up there, and I was extremely impressed with his desire to win. When Glenledi Chief came at him (in the home straight) that horse was never going to get past him.”
Sangue Reale was great value at $10.50 from the No. 2 barrier, and Voak did not bustle him early while Stuart McDonald urged the $3.10 favourite Prince Of Pleasure to the front. Vampiro ($8.50) raced without cover, while Sangue Reale was virtually in the breeze when he raced in the one-out, one-back position in the first lap — four or five lengths behind Vampiro.
Vampiro took a narrow lead 225m from home while Voak switched Sangue Reale three wide, and the gelding quickly gathered momentum and surged to the front in the final 100m to win by a half-length from $31 chance Glenledi Chief, who impressed in finishing strongly from last at the bell.
Prince Of Pleasure weakened to finish sixth, while the $4.80 second favourite Lavra Joe finished tenth. Lavra Joe started from the outside (barrier No. 9) on the front line. He raced at the rear before starting a three-wide move with 1050m to travel, and then went four wide in the back straight.
Wildwest ($5.50) trailed the pacemaker Prince Of Pleasure and was badly hampered for room in the final circuit before finishing an unlucky eighth.