Local trainer Paul Perry prepared his 47th winner of the season when the stable saddled up two double-figure priced victors on Saturday at Newcastle. Hunter Valley-based jockey Mikayla Weir produced the ride of the day to steer Perry’s New Zealand-bred mare Majestic Style to the easiest win on the program. The four-year-old, a $17 chance, was slowly away in the 1870m Benchmark 64 Handicap from barrier two and Weir drove her along the rail to settle midfield. Majestic Style never went around a horse, gaining a rails-hugging passage from the home turn, and she sprinted quickly late to win by 3.83 lengths. It was the mare’s third win in 16 starts, and her second for Perry after being trained by Danny O’Brien in Victoria.
Also on the day, Bakerloo ($11), a daughter of the Perry-trained Group 1-winner The Mission, won her second race on the track. It was a faultless ride by local jockey Ash Morgan, who positioned the three-year-old worse than midfield on the rail in the 1200m Benchmark 68 Handicap. The filly received an uninterrupted run along the fence in the straight before coming around the leader in the last 100m. Bakerloo held off the late challenge from Oakfield Duke to win by 0.42 of a length. Perry also won two races at the Newcastle meeting 10 days earlier.
Bakerloo’s victory took Morgan to half a win behind leader Aaron Bullock in the NSW jockeys’ premiership. Bullock did not ride on Saturday, nor did Christian Reith. The latter was replaced by Lee Magorrian on the promising Kris Lees-trained Seasons Of Mist, an easy winner of the Maiden Plate (1870m). Last start at Muswellbrook on a heavy track, the three-year-old stormed home to go down by a head. The longer trip and bigger track on Saturday were ideal but he was under hard riding on the turn before outstaying his opponents to win by 1.58 lengths.
David Atkins combined with Lees’ apprentice Benjamin Osmond to win the 1200m Maiden Plate with Godelba. The three-year-old filly put the writing on the wall last start when a fast-finishing second in a 900m maiden on April 24. She was also placed in better company in her previous two races at Newcastle.
Another Newcastle-trained winner was Jay Hopkins’ Sonofdec. The three-year-old contested the Benchmark 64 Handicap (1500m) with Jean Van Overmeire in the saddle. Unlucky in his previous start at Muswellbrook, the lightly raced son of Kermadec travelled much closer and he toughed it out to win by 0.35 of a length. He has won three of six starts.
The Ryan-Alexiou stable’s grey colt, Snatchreilly, broke through for a well-deserved win in the opening event, a 1200m Maiden Plate. Keagan Latham allowed the three-year-old to stride to the lead from the outset and he was never challenged to win by 3.47 lengths. The victor now has a win and three placings from six starts. He is a son of the Ryan trained multiple Group 1 winner Trapeze Artist.