Sandown may not frequently host Group racing, but jockey Craig Williams certainly made the most of Saturday’s Carlyon Stakes program, which was transferred from Moonee Valley due to ongoing construction.
Melbourne’s leading rider dominated the meeting, recording four winners, including the day’s premier event, the Group 3 Carlyon Stakes, aboard Cavalry Girl for trainer Tom Dabernig.
Williams acknowledged his history of success at Sandown, having previously won the Group 1 Underwood Stakes on Zaaki, but noted that opportunities in feature races at the track have become rarer, making this successful day particularly rewarding.
“We’ve been lucky that Sandown can take the weight (of transferred meetings) and it’s great to see plenty of people here and have a good day,” Williams stated.
The jockey completed a winning hat-trick on the day with Cavalry Girl, following earlier victories on Final Moment for Clayton Douglas and Buggsy, prepared by Mick Price and Michael Kent Jnr.
His first triumph came aboard the Tony and Calvin McEvoy-trained Nearco Frod, who achieved its fourth successive victory in a 2400m race.
In the 1000m Carlyon Stakes, Williams partnered Cavalry Girl again. The mare had previously achieved commanding wins in her last two starts under the guidance of Todd Pannell and Linda Meech.
On this occasion, the four-year-old daughter of Bivouac demonstrated versatility, settling behind Beast Mode until the final 200 metres before powering through a tight gap along the inside rail.
The $2.30 favourite held off Bazaball Rewarded ($10) by a half-length, with Losesomewinmore ($7.50) securing third place a length further back. Punters comparing the best horse racing betting apps saw the favourite justify the strong market support.
Williams suggested that Cavalry Girl’s ability to overcome the race dynamics was a testament to her improvement this preparation and endorsed her as a strong contender for the Group 1 Moir Stakes (1000m) back at Sandown on September 5.
“She’s ticked another box coming here and being successful at Sandown, which may give Tom a good option in two weeks,” Williams said. “She would definitely be putting her hand up very high in a Moir this year.”
Following her Carlyon Stakes triumph, Cavalry Girl moved into $4.50 second favouritism for the Moir Stakes, with only the fleet-footed filly Natural Fling ($3.50) rated shorter.
The betting markets for the Moir Stakes are already heating up, so check out the top betting sites for the latest odds.
