3 minute read
Trainer and jockey quotes after the Hertz Handicap at Ballarat on Saturday taken out by Don't Hope Do.
Race Result:
1st: Don't Hope Do (S Zahra/J Childs) - $5.00 fav
2nd: Overstrike (C Bieg/J Holder) - $9.00
3rd: Colsridge (A Pace/J Mott) - $16
Winning Time: 1:03.79 Last 600m: N/A
Margins: 2-¼ lengths x 3/4 lengths
Don't Hope Do leads all the way to get his first win in over a year @jchilds47 has a Ballarat double @szahraracing pic.twitter.com/TFcMfECMxw
— Racing.com (@Racing) December 7, 2024
Winning Trainer: Simon Zahra
Leading: "The plan was to sort of take a bit of cover but no one really wanted to lead and he was happy to sort of go there and had an easy time early on and the horse just went through his gears nicely and he obviously put the writing on the wall the other day at Cranbourne and he's obviously a nice horse progressing."
"We had no choice there (at Cranbourne), he drew sort of out wide and it was a first-up run, three months in the paddock so we sort of erred on the side of caution that day and just waited to hit the line and have a good blowout and I think today will bring him on again and he's just onwards and upwards I think.
Future plans: "I've got to say we obviously rate him quite well; he had just a few little minor hiccups in the autumn, so we put him out and gave him a bit more time, and I think we can sort of work our way through the summer and maybe head into the autumn or just have him freshen up, so we've got plenty of time to dissect it today. It's just nice to have him back to sort of where he was 12 months ago."
Winning Jockey: Jordan Childs
Pre-race tactics: "The plan wasn't to necessarily lead, I sort of thought on paper I'd probably be just behind him in the box seat, but he began so well there wasn't a lot of pressure, so I just let him find a rhythm, didn't want to be dragging him around. He travelled really well for me, and then when I asked him in the straight, I was impressed in the way he let down: he was really electric through the line."
Learnt from Cranbourne: "Yeah, a lot, he's got a really good turn of foot, obviously we drew wide that day so we went back and we had the ride for luck, and he let go really well. Today was just a bit of a different story from the better barrier, we were able to hold a more forward spot, but he's definitely a horse on the rise, so Simon and the team are placing him well and hopefully he can keep going through his grades."
