QEWY closed out Charlie Appleby’s stunning raid on the Melbourne spring with victory in the Sandown Cup, pushing the stable’s down-under prizemoney through the $1.5 million barrier in the space of a month.
The decision to back Qewy up from his fourth in the Melbourne Cup paid dividends, as he led from start to finish to cap off a remarkable run of success for the Godolphin team.
Qewy ($1.90) was rated brilliantly in front by Melbourne Cup-winning jockey Kerrin McEvoy, and scored by long neck from Swacadelic ($6.50), with All I Survey ($31) in third place.
Appleby’s team sent down to Australia contested 10 races for five wins — and a total of $1,512,000 prizemoney — in a four-week blitz, which assistant trainer James Ferguson said was a template for the future.
Qewy held off a late charge from Swacadelic to win the Sandown Cup. Picture: Wayne LudbeySource:News Corp Australia
“The horses have run really well, for (Qewy) to win this just tops it all off, and makes the trip worthwhile,” Ferguson said. “We brought the right profile of horse over here, they have all thrived.
“(Qewy) put in a great performance and was given a great ride by Kerrin. He definitely had a hard run in the Melbourne Cup. But he pulled out all the stops and everyone is delighted with this win.
“We hope to come back soon and hope to have more winners next time.”
Qewy’s success added to his victory in the Geelong Cup and good performance in the Melbourne Cup. The stable was also served well by Scottish, who ran second in the Caulfield Cup before suffering an injury, Lexus winner Oceanographer and Bendigo Cup winner Francis Of Assisi, who blitzed the field to win the Queen Elizabeth Stakes in a remarkable performance on the last day of the Flemington Carnival.
Charlie Appleby and Kerrin McEvoy formed a lethal combination this spring.Source:Getty Images
McEvoy said Qewy would be competitive in next year’s $2 million Sydney Cup if Appleby decided to bring the seven-year-old son of Street Cry back to Australia in the autumn.
“Yeah, that is a good money race for a horse like him,” McEvoy said. “The pressure of the (Melbourne) Cup got to him a bit and he still ran a great race, so he is a good quality staying horse.”
Ferguson said the stable was pleased Qewy had quickly become a fan favourite of the Australian public after his strong wins in the Geelong Cup and at Sandown yesterday.
“The support from the racing community has been huge,” he said. “He has become a bit of a favourite and everyone keeps asking about him, so it is good to see him do well.”
Francis Of Assisi crushed his rivals in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Flemington.Source:Getty Images
HE’S APPLES
Charlie Appleby’s spring moneymakers
SCOTTISH: 2nd Caulfield Cup ($425,000)
QEWY: 1st Geelong Cup ($180,000); 4th Melbourne Cup ($250,000), 1st Sandown Cup ($90,000)
OCEANOGRAPHER: 3rd Geelong Cup ($27,000), 1st Lexus Stakes ($180,000)
FRANCIS OF ASSISI: 1st Bendigo Cup ($180,000), 1st Queen Elizabeth Stakes ($180,000)
Total: $1,512,000
TAB BETTING REVIEW
RACE 1: Arctic Angel received plenty of late support and punters were rewarded in the Merson Cooper Stakes. Arctic Angel was $11 this morning and eventually closed on the third line of betting at $6. The unplaced Vinland firmed from $9 originally into $4.80 favourite while Kedleston — also unplaced — was posted at $11 and closed $5 second elect. The third-placed Zarpoya opened the $4.60 favourite on Wednesday and was $31 when the barriers opened.
RACE 2: Redkirk Warrior did the right thing by favourite punters in holding off Stratum Star in the Yarramalong Racing Club Stakes. Redkirk Warrior was as short as $2.30 before closing $2.65 (touched $2.70 a couple of times). Stratum Star firmed late from $5.50 to $3.80 while the unplaced Sovereign Nation was an alarming drifter ($3.70 to $7.50).
RACE 3: Qewy was heavily supported as soon as the Sandown Cup market was posted on Wednesday and he saluted. Qewy opened $3.20 and was as short as $1.75 before closing $1.85 including bets of $15,000 and $12,900 at $1.85. Runner-up Swacadelic was the only shortener apart from Qewy in the last 30 minutes of betting ($8 to $6.50).
RACE 4: O’Malley was a popular $3.70 favourite in the Doveton Stakes but finished out of the placings. Bullpit — also unplaced — opened $17 on Wednesday before eventually hovering around the $5-$5.50 mark. Husson Eagle was easy in the betting ($6.50 to $9).
RACE 5: Prompt Response didn’t let her backers down in the Twilight Glow Stakes and there were plenty of them. Prompt Response was crunched from $3.30 into $2.60 including $7,500 and $5,000 at $3, $5,000 at $2.80 and $7,500 at $2.60. Moonlites Choice — who was unplaced — was $9.50 into as short as $6.50 while the third-placed Petition was $5.50 to $7.50.
RACE 6: There were cheers aplenty from favourite punters when Morton’s Fork just got home in the Sandown Guineas. Morton’s Fork was as short as $2 out to $2.30 before closing $2.25 with one punter placing $10,000 at $2.30 late. The third-placed Jennifer Lynn was $4 into $3.20 before closing $3.50 while the unplaced Benz was as much as $9.50 into $7.
RACE 7: After getting out to as much as $6.50, Beautiful Romance was supported into $5 and won the Zipping Classic in a deceptive finish. The runner-up Almoonqith hovered around the $4.60-$4.80 mark before drifting late to $5.50. Who Shot Thebarman — who was unplaced — eased as favourite from $3.20 to $4.20 before closing $3.60 with one bet of $6,000 at $4.20. The third-placed Big Orange blew from $4 to $5.50 with one punter placing $10,000 at $5.50 late.
RACE 8: Illustrious Lad was heavily backed to win the Kevin Heffernan Stakes but Lucky Hussler was a shade stronger. Illustrious Lad opened $6 on Wednesday and closed $3.20 (touched $3.10) with one late wager of $10,000 at $3.20. Lucky Hussler opened $4 and was as much as $5.50 into $4.60 today before drifting again to $5.50. The original favourite Under The Louvre — who was unplaced — opened $3.50 and was $4 out to $6.50 today.
RACE 9: Turnitaround was able to land a couple of good bets after taking out the Eclipse Stakes. Turnitaround was as much as $12 into $9.50 including wagers of $7,000 the win / $3,000 the place at $10/$3.25 and $5,000 at $9.50. The unplaced Cool Chap was well respected as the $4.20 favourite while Alaskan Rose — also unplaced — was $7 into $5.50 before drifting late to $7.
RACE 10: Favourite punters had a few anxious moments but Silent Sedition got the prize in the Summoned Stakes. Silent Sedition was well backed from $5 this morning into as short as $3.10 before closing $3.30. Original favourite Extensible — who finished third — was $4.20 out to as much as $4.80 before tightening late into $4.40. Shillelagh just finished out of the placings and was the subject of late bets — $15,500 and $12,000 at $4.60.
Originally published as Qewy adds another cup to Appleby’s spring haul
