Josh Parr returned to the winner’s circle in emphatic fashion at Rosehill, snapping a dry spell with a winning treble that included a strong ride on Elamaz in the Listed McKell Cup.
After several fruitless weeks in Queensland, where his last win came aboard Bosustow in the Gold Coast Guineas, Parr made the call to stay in Sydney – a move that paid off handsomely.
Despite having two of his six bookings scratched, Parr made the most of the day, notching wins on Rolling Magic ($7) in the Midway Handicap (1300m), Thunderlips ($3.70) in the Schweppes Handicap (1500m), and Elamaz ($2.15 fav) in the McKell Cup (2000m).
He also registered placings aboard Pure Alpha in the Asahi Super Dry Handicap (1800m) and Snack Bar later in the program.
“I have been going to Brisbane and it has been a whitewash to be honest,” Parr admitted.
“I had a bit of luck early with Bosustow and then it was downhill from there.
“It just slowed my momentum up so I was really happy to take a good book of rides here today and they have turned up and delivered for me.”
Elamaz, a former European galloper trained by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, was having his Australian debut and first race since September. Stepping up to 2000m for the first time, he was expected to settle with cover but instead found himself leading.
“Our plan wasn’t to lead the race. We were looking for cover to make it as soft as possible but that cover just wasn’t going to eventuate,” Parr said.
“I had to make a decision so I pressed to the front and trusted the stable and how well they had him and he did the rest.
“There was a period down the side where he had no clue where he was, leading the race here at Rosehill, and he’s done well to fight off every challenger and the one very late (Belvedere Boys), he held it to the line.”
Stable rep Neil Paine of Tulloch Lodge said the win came as no surprise and ticked an important box for the horse over the 2000m trip.
“What do you say? Gai and Adrian do it all the time, especially with these horses from overseas,” Paine said.
“We seem to have luck with them first-up. We love them.”
Paine confirmed that the decision to run Elamaz in the McKell Cup was strategic, intended to boost his rating in time for the spring. With that achieved, he is likely to enjoy a short freshen-up before tackling stronger assignments.
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