Winless since capturing the Group II Percy Sykes Stakes at Randwick fourteen months ago, Away Game might have earned a trip to the Breeders’ Cup meeting at Del Mar in November following a fast-finishing win in Saturday’s Group III Healy Stakes (1200m) at Eagle Farm.
In a battle of the Magic Millions 2yo Classic winning daughters of Snitzel, Away Game came down the outside fence under Steph Thornton to defeat Exhilarates by a neck with a half-head back to the 3yo Pride Of Dubai filly Bella Nipotina in third.
Co-trainer Ciaron Maher floated the idea of the Breeders’ Cup as Away Game’s part-owners, the Mathiesen family, live in the United States.
“I said that if she won today, it might be the ticket to get her over there,” Maher said.
“She is a really good horse, and most of ours improve second-up.
“It was a really good ride by Steph Thornton. Kerrin McEvoy said last start that when they pressed forward, it was her undoing a little bit. With that bit of knowledge, we were confident to ride her quitter today and wait for that turn of foot, so she got it spot on.”
It was a first Group win for Thornton.
“Kerrin gave me my first city winner in Melbourne when I was a 3kg apprentice, so now he has given me my first Group III winner, so it is amazing.”
A $425,000 purchase by Kerri Radcliffe Bloodstock out of the Mill Park draft at the 2019 Gold Coast Yearling Sale, Away Game advances her record to five wins, two seconds, and three thirds from 14 starts with earnings of $3,260,400.
The 3yo daughter of Snitzel is a sister to the talented Modern Wonder, the winner of the 2016 SAJC Dequetteville Stakes and placed in the Group III MVRC Typhoon Tracy Stakes and Group III MRC Thoroughbred Club Stakes.
They are two of the five winners from six to race out of the stakes-placed Elusive Quality (USA) mare Elusive Wonder.
A half-sister to the Listed BRC McDougall Stakes winner Tantra (Royal Academy) and to the dam of Listed winner Oak Park (More Than Ready), Elusive Wonder hails from the family of Group 1 ATC Randwick Guineas winner Inference (So You Think).
Elusive Wonder foaled her eighth consecutive filly in 2019, a daughter of Merchant Navy and was bred back to the son of Fastnet Rock to produce a colt last spring.
Elusive Wonder missed to Zoustar last year.
Away Game is the 12th stakes-winner of the season for Snitzel joining Written Tycoon, I Am Invincible, and So You Think and one behind Fastnet Rock.
The 4-time Champion Australian stallion stands at Arrowfield Stud in 2021 at a fee of $165,000.
