Brazen turns Jeff’s day around with nippy first-up win

Brazen turns Jeff’s day around with nippy first-up win
Cluden trainer Jeff Caught put a disappointing start to the day behind
him when raw talent Exceedingly Brazen outsprinted his rivals at Cluden
Park on Sunday.
Caught was left dejected when his smart three-year-old Far And Wide
missed the start by four lengths and finished fourth as a heavily backed
favourite behind Stylish Diamond in the first, the Ladbrokes 3YO Hcp
(1000m).
But he had reason to smile after Exceedingly Brazen’s all-the-way win
from a wide gate for Brisbane hoop Anthony Allen in the Ryan Wiggins
Jockey Of The Year BM0-55 Hcp (1000m).
“He’s got plenty of ability, but just hasn’t fully shown us what he can do,”
Caught said.
“He did win one last prep but he’s a bit of a thinker. In one of his runs he
hit the front and half let up but didn’t get beaten far.
“Then before he spelled he fell asleep in the gates, was second last to
jump. That’s not him.
“I think he’s starting to turn the corner now.
“We put him in a jump out a couple of weeks ago and he’s slowly just
starting to work it out.
“I had him in two races. That was the weaker race with a bad barrier and
I had him in the last in a Class 1 over 1200m and he had barrier 2.
“I thought we’d go this way with a good jockey despite the wide alley and
hopefully that would work and he won well.
“It was a nice change of luck after the first. I’ll tip that bloke (Far And
Wide) out and give him a blow and bring him back next year. He’s never
shown signs of doing that, missing the start like that, so it was a real
surprise.
“I think he’ll make a nice horse.”

Winning Rockhampton trainer Kris Hansen was stoked with filly Stylish
Diamond’s narrow win in the race over the Tom Button-trained Formal
Affair.
But he was equally pleased with the return of stablemate Bowdene who
finished an unlucky third after getting blocked for a run on the fence.
Hansen, who won the Townsville 2YO Classic with Sheza Alibi last year,
will now push ahead with plans to take Bowdene back for a tilt at a
metropolitan race in Brisbane.
“I knew the filly was going to lead and get a nice easy time with
Bowdene behind her. Because it was a small field, he got boxed in and
that was that,” Hansen said.
“If he gets out he wins. I was still happy with the result.
“She goes good the filly. I’ve got an opinion of her and think she’ll be
good especially as we step up to 1200m to 1400m.
“But the other fellow is a pretty smart horse.
“When we took him down to Brisbane for the Listed race earlier in the
year he struck a heavy track and just didn’t handle it.
“The whole plan this prep is to take him down again. There’s a couple of
races down the track, but we’ll just get him going and back on track first.”
Trainer Joanna Hassett celebrated her birthday with a large group of
friends when their bargain buy Towers Hill lunged on the line to win the
Ville Maiden Plate 1400m for jockey Aidan Holt.
Nicknamed Tony The Pony, Towers Hill cost just $2000 after failing to
measure up in the south-east of the State.
But he didn’t get to Sunday’s win problem free.
Hassett had to nurse the now six-year-old through a number of issues to
get him into winning shape.
“It was bloody great to win with him for a big group of owners who are
good friends,” Hassett said.
Towers Hill provided Holt with the first leg of a winning treble. He also
scored on Brave Agenda for trainer Rhein Sewell in the Fiona Sandkuhl
Apprentice of the Year BM 65 Hcp (1400m) and Cifonelli for his wife
Georgie Holt in the Ladbrokes BM 70 Hcp (1000m).

Premier trainer Georgie Holt also won earlier with Colleano in the Vale
Mervyn Milton Open Hcp (1200m) with Ashley Butler in the saddle.