Michael Freedman’s “Hail Mary” approach landed perfectly with his super-fit mare Cinsault grabbing stakes honours in the Millie Fox Stakes (1300m) on Rosehill Gardens on Saturday.
The Godolphin runner Cinsault entered with three wins from four summer trials in provincial grade, prompting Freedman to step her up for the elite mares showdown.
“It just goes to show what can happen when you have a mare in form like she is at the moment,” Freedman said.
“On facts and figures, I didn’t think she could beat Lazzura but she is in such a purple patch of form.
“This is a massive jump from a benchmark 78 race to a Group 2 but with a mare going as well as her, sometimes you just have to roll with it.
“I had a good chat with the Godolphin team early in the week and I told them I know this is a bit of a ‘Hail Mary’ but I thought it was worth having a go at some black type with Cinsault.
“Godolphin are very easy to train for and they said we will go with what you think.”
Cinsault ($6) staged a thrilling comeback when overtaken by favourite Lazzura ($2.05), edging her out by a long head while Dark Glitter ($9.50) was 2-1/2 lengths back in third.
As Lazzura powered clear mid-straight, it seemed Chris Waller and James McDonald were set for their 500th collaborative victory, only for Cinsault to rally powerfully and snatch success.
Schofield claimed top jockey spoils via a treble, including Stretan Ruler’s win in the Silver Slipper Stakes and Starphisticated in the Midway, hailing Cinsault’s run as “very gutsy.”
“She (Cinsault) actually beat me in a ding-dong finish last start and I can see why, she’s very gutsy, she just wants to give you everything she has,” Schofield said.
“There was probably a bit more pressure early in the race than I would’ve liked, but we were up there travelling well.
“I waited until we straightened to come off the leader’s back and when Lazzura didn’t put me away early I thought “right, we’re the fit horse, we’ll get you later.” She was the stronger of the two late.”
Freedman thus achieved a stakes treble, with Ninja taking the Hobartville Stakes and Pallaton the Zeditave Stakes at Caulfield.
Freedman noted that a strong recovery for Cinsault could see her lined up in the Coolmore Classic (1500m) at Rosehill Gardens come March 14.
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