Kementari likes to space his wins nowadays, but the striking near-black son of Lonhro relished the four-horse war in the Group II Gilgai Stakes at Flemington.
With the roars of Damien Oliver reverberating around the empty stands, Kementari finished strongly to edge out defending champion Zoutori (Zoustar) by a short-half-head with a head back to third-placed Kemalpasa (Magnus), who was just ahead of Splintex (Snitzel).
The winner of the Group 1 Randwick Guineas at three, Kementari proved sub-fertile at stud.
Gelded and returned to training, the son of Lonhro broke a 19-start, two-year drought in the Group III Scahill Stakes at Ascot in December 2020.
The 7yo gelding advances his record to six wins, six seconds and six thirds from 34 starts with earnings of $2,366,800.
“He’d been training really well. I’d only just started riding him this time around,” Oliver said.
“I trailed him and galloped him during the week and you couldn’t ask a horse to be going any better if you didn’t know who it was.
“But I was quietly confident he’d run a good race today but it is Kemantari and he wins sparingly, you might say. I travelled really nicely in the run and I wanted to try and get there late if I could.
“I was a little bit held up and when I got out I got there in plenty of time. I had to have a whisper in his ear late to get the best out of him.
“James doesn’t tie me down too much with instructions. He sort of leaves it to me, especially if I have been working with the horses here. He backs my judgement with what I’m feeling on the track. I’ve watched him from afar and he’s always shown so much, this horse, but probably hasn’t delivered a lot of the time.”
“He’s a beautiful horse to ride, he’s got a great temperament and it was great to see him get a win today.”
Kementari is a half-brother to Listed Lonhro Plate winner and Group 1 ATC Sires' Produce Stakes runner-up Telperion (Street Cry), and to to the stakes-placegetters Valaquenta (Street Boss) and Palurien (Reset)
He is one of six winners from a many to race out of the Melbourne winning Redoute's Choice mare Yavanna, a daughter of the dual Group III winner Wild Queen (Loup Sauvage), who was purchased by Darley as a yearling for $260,000.
From the incomparable Denise's Joy family, Yavanna has a three-year-old sister to Kementari named Laurelin, a last start winner at Randwick back in July, and a 2yo sister named Valier.
Not served in 2019, Yavanna foaled a Too Darn Hot (GB) filly on September 2.
