Wide gates were the decisive factor in the Group 3 Standish Handicap (1200m) at Flemington, where Disneck claimed his first victory at black-type level.
In the 12-horse field, barriers 11 and 12 proved pivotal, producing a result that caught many off guard as the resuming sprinter stormed home.
Starting at $11 and partnered by Daniel Stackhouse, Disneck was allowed to settle back before circling the field, unleashing a powerful surge at the 200m to win by a length from Extratwo ($41), with Contemporary ($101) a long head away in third after a similar wide run.
Race favourite Hedged raced closer to the inside but never looked comfortable and finished tenth, beaten 6¼ lengths.
Prior to Saturday, Disneck’s strongest win had come at benchmark 94 level, though the Trapeze Artist gelding had hinted at stakes ability when fifth, beaten two lengths by a stablemate, in the Group 3 Rising Fast Stakes (1200m) during the Flemington carnival.
A lacklustre Hawkesbury trial, where he was beaten 6¾ lengths despite being ridden along, may have turned some punters away, but Stackhouse was comfortable following the stable’s instructions.
“I spoke to the stable representative this morning and he said, ‘just ride him cold, give him his chance and just be patient,’” Stackhouse said.
“He’s got a great turn of foot. I wasn’t too concerned about his first-up trial.
“I thought he’s really good when he’s fresh, he’s ran really well down the straight and I thought back on top of the ground, we mapped right, being out wide, trained by Bjorn Baker.
“A lot of ticks there, so I was very confident going forward.”
Stackhouse said Disneck thrives when ridden quietly and felt the race unfolded exactly to plan.
“The plan was to get back obviously and follow Mark Zahra (aboard Aviatress, 4th),” Stackhouse said.
“I knew his horse would give us a good run into the race.
“He’s really effective when he’s ridden cold like that. He’s got a great turn of foot and you can see that he’s got there too early.
“He pricked his ears when he got there but he just was going so well and he just put himself into the race that quickly, but it was a nice win and that’s a good start to his preparation.”
Markets were active across leading Australian betting sites for the Standish Handicap, with wide runners proving the key to the finish.
The post Disneck too slick in Standish Handicap first appeared on Just Horse Racing.