Trainer Nick Ryan was convinced he made the correct decision to debut Doubt Time at Caulfield following a midweek track gallop at Flemington.
The Ryan stable did not shy away from supporting their charge, with the two-year-old gelding firming considerably from $31 to $8 before snatching victory in the Stow Robotics Handicap (1100m) on Saturday.
Under the patient guidance of apprentice Luke Cartwright, Doubt Time surged to victory, winning by a nose from the $3.50 favourite Resolutely. Stakes ($5) finished a further 1-¾ lengths in arrears.
The son of Doubtland, a horse that achieved dual Stakes wins before retiring to stud, was ridden with restraint by Cartwright before unleashing a powerful finishing burst.
“He’s very much like his father,” Ryan remarked. “His father won his first start on a Soft 7 at Kensington, and he came from back and swamped them.”
“We trialled here last week, and then I galloped him on Thursday morning on the inside grass at Flemington. I pushed the button a little bit in the last 50 (metres) and I nearly fell off the back of him. The penny has finally dropped, and I said to Luke to keep him in your hands, bounce, squeeze, travel, and if you’re a bit back, don’t panic.”
“He’s got an 8.05 metre stride on the data, and he’s not fully developed and I said it’s very important for you to get room to the outside. He’s never had one with the whip, and when you shake him up, he’s going to launch, whether that’s running home to finish fourth or fifth, or winning, I had a feeling of what he was going to do.”
Ryan indicated that he would not rush Doubt Time back to the races and plans to send the gelding for a spell.
“He’s two, so we’ll have to see how he is in the morning, how his shins are,” Ryan confirmed. “He’ll definitely be in the paddock next week, for how long, I don’t know. He’s had three jump-outs and two trials, and he had come here (Caulfield) twice. I did dual accept for Wodonga on Sunday, but we were always coming here, so we’ll see how he pulls up, but that was pretty impressive.”
Get the latest betting sites for the Stow Robotics Handicap.