The Group 1 Galaxy winner of last year, Bel Sprinter was fresh up and had to carry the topwieght of 59kgs to the dead heat victory with fellow Group 1 winner Miracles of Life (Not a Single Doubt) who had a 3kg swing in the weights.
Trained by Jason Warren and ridden by Ben Melham, Bel Sprinter settled near the tail of the field and Melham rode for luck as he picked a path through the field. At the 200m it looked like the son of Bel Esprit could not win but when he seen daylight, he sprouted wings to dive on the line to dead heat with Miracles of Life, who had lead throughout.
"He has been a great horse for the stable and a great horse for me," commented Warren. "He is the first horse I have trained to win over a A$1 million in prizemoney. He has been a big help for me in my career.
"The mare that dead heated with us is a Group 1 winner and there were two more Group 1 winners in that field on Saturday. We couldn't be happier with the horse's performance.
"We will be aiming towards the Group 1 Darley Classic at this stage then he will head across to Perth to run in the Group 1 Winterbottom Stakes."
Warren is a fan of the Ready to Run Sale himself and said "I'll be there for sure," in regards to the Sale next month.
Saturday's win was Bel Sprinter's eighth win and took his winnings past A$1 million for his owners that include his trainer Warren along with Mr W J Ford, Mr R L Clancy, Mr S C Nankervis, Mr W C Patrick, Mr M E Brown, Mr D M Gillies & Mr B L Toohey.
New Zealand Bloodstock's Ready to Run Sale commences on 19 & 20 November with Breeze Ups held at Te Rapa Racecourse tomorrow (Monday 20) & Tuesday 21 October.
Lyndhurst Farm has a draft of 22 two-year-olds entered in the Ready to Run Sale including the half-brother to Bel Sprinter.
Bel Sprinter's sire Bel Esprit is represented by a solitary entry in the Sale – a colt catalogued at Lot 267.
For more news and information from New Zealand Bloodstock visit www.nzb.co.nz. To view the catalogue for the Ready to Run Sale, click here.
NZB Release
