SPECIFIC CHOICE may have been the runner-up on Saturday at Rosehill by just 6 inches but what it proved to the stable and connections was the future looks bright for the imposing son of Lonhro. To jump from a provincial maiden win on debut straight to Saturday class against a quality field was a major leap and the horse repaid our faith in him going down by the narrowest of margins.
Specific Choice went down by a very narrow margin on Saturday
Credit where its due – The Gary Portelli trained Regal Dane was too good for us on the day and thoroughly deserved his win. It would have been a travesty of justice had Specific Choice beaten him home the way the top weight and favourite was held up and severely hampered loosing all momentum and then balancing again giving us a massive 5.0kgs he gathered us in the shadow of the post. Regal Dane is only a touch bigger than pony size and we may come across it again in the Autumn but what we do know is, we have far more improvement to come than the winner and will be far better suited next preparation and at further distances.
Specific Choice was backed off the map in what was the biggest move around Australia on the day. However that was not inspired by the stable or ourselves and simply shows the vulnerability of prices when mums and dads follow media hyped headlines.
As we advised all owners and declared on our website pre-race story, we knew he was unsuited for this event based upon the fact he had the virus and missed the weeks work and was looking for further than the 1300m. However the racing programme didn’t suit us. We also knew on pure ability he would run super and finish in the mix. He did that well and was defeated just 6 inches. Oh well that’s racing ! It’s a sport and you always need luck in running as well. There was little doubt that had we gone straight instead of shying out the last 50m when catching sight of the finishing post we would have won but probably, justice was done in this event.
The race panned out exactly how we had anticipated with Specific Choice getting back off the speed before balancing up at the top of the straight and unwinding strongly. If your eyes were only on Specific Choice you thought you were home but replays clearly show the winner’s run was awesome.
Specific Choice more than held his own on the weekend.
Jockey Glyn Schofield was full of praise for Specific Choice when he returned. He said that he “thought he had it won at the 200m” and then “because he got to the front too quickly the horse thought he had done his job and then switched off and started to stargaze, looking about and then shying from the post. – its just inexperience” he said. Also “He’s going to be a terrific horse when the penny drops and he grows into his big frame. He’s got a lot of ability – you’re going to have a lot of fun with him”.
Even Gary Portelli commented in his post race interview he was shocked to win based upon how good the runner-up is, whilst Jason Collett the rider of the winner commented he didn’t think he could beat Specific Choice because he goes so well.
That’s why racing is a sport and there is no such thing a as certainty. Racing is based upon dreams and luck. Class rises to the top but other factors certainly play their part. That’s why statistically a Good Horse will win “1 race per 7 starts” because of all the variables.
There will be a lot of form come out of this race and no more so than for Specific Choice. The stable summed him up in an easy to explain way of thinking: He’s like a 6 moth old puppy training to be a guide dog. When he is mature he will be awesome but now he’s just a playful kid who could well develop into a professional but its still up to him to learn what he’s doing.
Specific Choice has pulled up very well and the stable reported they were very pleased. Specific Choice will now be aimed at a race at Warwick Farm on Saturday 10 November a 3yo Benchmark 75 1400m and if all goes to plan he will then run in a 3yo Bm 80 at Rosehill over 1500m which boasts an Inglis Bonus attached to it, before a short let up to bring back for the Autumn.