Midnight Edition, who has genuine claims to the title of most improved galloper in the North Island this season, stepped up to a new level at Pukekohe when he claimed the Gr.3 Concorde Stakes (1200m) in emphatic fashion.
The Bruce Wallbank-trained four-year-old had shown plenty of promise during his three-year-old campaign, including a dead-heat for first with Yaldi in the Gr.2 Auckland Guineas (1400m) only to be relegated to second in a post-race protest.
He finished that season off with a victory at Te Rapa in April and then returned in style with a fresh-up win at the same venue in September, which has been followed by three successive placings, including two at stakes level.
Bidding to get the stakes race monkey off his back on Saturday, the son of Wrote trounced a handy field courtesy of a copybook front-running ride from Matthew Cameron.
Cameron took the initiative from the moment the starting gates opened, allowing Midnight Edition to stride to the front and set up a leisurely pace to suit themselves as the rest of the six runners allowed the pair to dictate terms.
Cameron had a lapful of horse early in the run home and when he let the brakes off, Midnight Edition scooted away from his rivals and held out the late closing Master Fay and Tardelli to win by just under a length.
Wallbank admitted he felt his charge had been a little unlucky when going down narrowly after ducking in sharply close to the winning post when finishing third in the Gr.3 Counties Bowl (1100m) at his last start.
“He is a very good horse and last time he heard the band playing and shied inwards, otherwise we would have won that one too,” Wallbank said.
“There was nothing the matter with him that day and he is really tough.
“We had thought of going to the Telegraph (Gr.1, 1200m), but he is only a four-year-old so we are going to bypass it.
“We will go to the open handicap on the 1st (of January) at Ellerslie and then to a mile at Te Rapa, as I think he can run a very good mile.”
Bred by Aston Racing Ltd from the Wallbank family’s outstanding racemare Midnight Gossip, who won two of her six starts and finished fourth in the 2016 Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m), Midnight Edition is the younger sibling of the well-performed Midnight Mass and Midnight Scandal.
Saturday’s victory is the fifth of his 17-start career, where has now won more than $273,000 in prizemoney. - LOVERACING.NZ NZ News Desk
