Cavalry Girl has continued her string of strong performances with an eye-catching victory at Caulfield Heath.
After breaking her maiden at Black Type level in Adelaide last start, Cavalry Girl contested open company on Saturday and dominated her rivals in the Sweeney Estate Agents Handicap (1000m).
Sent out as the $2.80 favourite under Linda Meech, Cavalry Girl showcased a potent turn of foot after straightening, putting the race beyond doubt. She finished 3-¾ lengths clear of Along The River ($5), with Bazaball Reward ($4) a further neck back in third. Observers focused on betting sites would have been impressed by the favourite’s commanding performance.
Joe O’Neill, a principal owner of Cavalry Girl, indicated that discussions would be held with trainer Tom Dabernig to map out the mare’s path towards the spring racing season.
“What we might do is step back,” O’Neill said. “She’s had a pretty good prep, and you can go to the well once too often.”
“She loves the straight at Flemington and to be there during Melbourne Cup week would be nice, but we’ll just see. There are options. There are races in Sydney, there are races here, but I don’t know if Sandown would suit her. She can only do what she is doing, and she is belting them and that was a pretty fair field.”
O’Neill has all but ruled out the Group 1 Moir Stakes (1000m), to be run at Sandown this year, favouring sprint races down the Flemington straight during Cup week, a track Cavalry Girl has previously performed well at.
Cavalry Girl, a daughter of Bivouac, has now won six of her 16 starts, with four placings and earnings approaching $400,000.
O’Neill described the four-year-old mare as a ‘marvel’.
“She’s a beautiful filly,” O’Neill declared. “I saw Bivouac up at the Hunter Valley on the weekend and I was talking to the boys that she looks like an Exceed And Excel filly, which Bivouac is by, and being from an I Am Invincible mare, and they’re gold. She’s a terrific filly and she annihilated them today. I was a bit worried today against the older horses, but she won well.”
With such a dominant performance, Cavalry Girl is a strong contender for upcoming features, and interested parties can check the racing betting markets for her next start.
