3 Oct 2020Probabeel emphasised her star quality when the Cambridge Stud mare triumphed in the G1 Epsom Handicap at Randwick this afternoon.
In the familiar gold and black silks, the highly-gifted four-year-old surged down the centre of the track to reign supreme in the feature mile.
“Probabeel has had a wonderful preparation and nothing to worry about and that’s the difference between winning and getting beaten,” trainer Jamie Richards said.
“So much planning and thought went into getting her into the race with the right weight, very much like the old school trainers used to do.
“Just like Colin Jillings, Dave O’Sullivan and Jim Gibbs - the true legends of New Zealand racing.”
Probabeel, successful in last season’s G1 Surround S. at Randwick, had won the G3 Bill Ritchie in her lead-up to the Epsom.
“She loves this track and she loves the mile. The team has done a great job with handling her and with Melody Belle winning the Group 1 at home it’s been a great day,” said Richards’ Sydney representative Craig Thornton, a former top-class jumps jockey.
“She’s had a trouble-free run and she’s just a gorgeous mare and a pleasure to do anything with. We’ll see how she comes through this, but they may look at Melbourne now.”
The G1 Cox Plate could now become a target for the valuable mare, who has won eight of her 18 starts and more than A$2.3 million.
Probabeel had a wide barrier to overcome in the Epsom, but with a fine ride from Kerrin McEvoy she proved too good.
“She’s been pleasing us all the way through the preparation. She flew the lids and we were a bit closer than I initially thought we'd be. We had partial cover for most of the race and got snaffled out of a spot when we bunched up at the 1000 metres," McEvoy said.
"She showed her true grit there, she really picked up well for me, and I knew that if I could just have a conservative run through the first part she was going to be really strong for me with no weight on her back and that is exactly what she was able to do.
"I thought straight away at the top of the lane that I had Bossy's (Glen Boss) measure on Funstar."