Outlaws Revenge continued his rise up the South Australian sprinting ranks claiming a second successive Listed feature on Saturday.
Trainer Ryan Balfour’s decision to bypass the early spring has proven fruitful one, as the four-year-old drove inside horses in the final 100m to grab victory in the Christmas Handicap with Dom Tourneur on board.
It has been a rollercoaster campaign for Outlaws Revenge. The horse was a late scratching at Ballarat in November, which forced Balfour to focus on features at home.
“Sometimes you’ve got to ride the wave,’’ Balfour said.
The $250,000 Group 3 Standish Handicap (1200m) at Flemington in January could be the horse’s immediate target heading towards the Adelaide Racing Carnival in 2022 and potential Group 1 Goodwood tilt.
“We might go to a Standish, we’ll see how he pulls up from this,’’ Balfour said.
“That’s the dream (the Goodwood), that’s where we’re going,’’ he said.
Port Lincoln mare Artful Libby ended a run of four consecutive second placings to break through at city level while Kayla Crowther’s impressive season in the saddle continued. The two-time Dux of the SA Apprentice Academy claimed a treble, which extended her lead to three and half wins on the South Australian Jockey Premiership.
Likewise, the impressive finish to 2021 for Mount Gambier horseman Peter Hardacre continued at Bordertown on Sunday winning the Cup with Sebonna.
Hardacre has trained 11 winners from 43 starts since September boasting the equal best strike-rate of any stable in SA.