Ciaron Maher has finally captured a flat feature at the Warrnambool Carnival, with Smokin’ Romans claiming victory in the Listed Warrnambool Cup.
While Maher had already collected 16 Warrnambool feature wins in partnership with former co-trainer David Eustace, all had come in jumps races.
Before this year’s Carnival, his resume included seven wins in the Grand Annual Steeplechase, five in the Brierly Steeplechase, and four in the Galleywood Hurdle, but none in the flat features — the Warrnambool Cup (2350m) or Wangoom Handicap (1200m).
Smokin’ Romans, sent out at $9 and ridden by Ben Melham, led all the way to hold off Torranzino ($12) and deliver Maher his breakthrough Cup success. Now, the Wangoom is the only feature missing from his Warrnambool set.
Maher, who grew up in the region, was confident heading into the race with three runners — Smokin’ Romans, Ziryab (third), and Strawberry Rock (fifth).
“I thought we had a pretty good chance here today. I’m absolutely rapt,” Maher told racing.com.
“He’s been such a great horse. To win a Group 1 and then carry a topweight like that.
“What a fantastic ride from Ben. He understands this horse really well.”
It marked Maher’s first Warrnambool Cup triumph, but it was the second for Melham, who had won the race back in 2010 aboard Hissing Sid.
Melham made use of an ideal inside draw and never left the fence during the run.
“The track has had a lot of traffic, and I thought I would stay hard on the rail,” Melham said.
“I wanted to lead on him because of the big weight, and I didn’t want to be stop-starting on him.
“He had to do a bit of work going out of the straight and it was only the weight (59kg) late that brought him back over the line.
“He is a Group 1 winner, who has a bit of class, but he can mix his form a little bit, but he does seem to go well for me.”
The pair had previously combined for a front-running win in the Group 3 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2600m) during the Melbourne Cup Carnival and were also runner-up in the Group 2 Sandown Classic (2400m) at Caulfield.