It was a banner day for jockey Ryan Maloney at Doomben on Saturday as he steered home four winners, including both of the program’s $160,000 Listed features.
Maloney first obliged favourite punters with a polished ride on $2.50 elect Midnight In Tokyo in the Tattersall’s Classic (1200m), before pulling off a minor upset aboard Rockribbed in the Recognition Stakes.
Rockribbed, sent out a $7.50 chance, prevailed by a nose over Tony Gollan-trained barnmate Boomtown Boss, who started $3.20 but had his winning momentum halted when checked at the 150-metre mark.
“I’ve had a bit of luck going my way with a few of the boys being on the sidelines and I was the lucky one to pick up the, well, not scraps by any means,” Maloney said after securing his quartet.
The gelding rebounded sharply from a ninth-place effort in the Keith Noud Classic at his seasonal return. Maloney acknowledged that while circumstances aided their cause, the ride still tested his decision-making.
“He began really nicely, just trucked into the straight and I didn’t have any options bar to go back to the inside, but he was too good,” he said.
By contrast, Midnight In Tokyo enjoyed an ideal passage, ending an 18-month drought with an emphatic 1-3/4-length triumph over Lonhro’s Queen for trainers Annabel and Rob Archibald.
“We controlled it and as soon as I released the brakes at the top of the straight I was basically just a passenger and lucky enough to be on her.”
The Tattersall’s Classic success was Maloney’s second win for the Archibald team on the day after Space Tracker ($4), which followed his opening-race victory aboard Silver Wedding ($1.90) for Ciaron Maher.
With Ben Thompson absent, Maloney capitalised by extending his Brisbane Metropolitan Jockeys’ Premiership advantage to eight wins, now leading 40 to 32.
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