Recap by phillip woo

Smart Charade came with a bold run widest out after settling at the rear of the field from the widest gate to grab victory 50m out. He was freshened up for this run which seemed to work the oracle. Noble De Love stayed on well for second following a one-out, oneback run. He built on a pleasing run first-up this term and should be able to score shortly. Destin finished well travelling third from the back to add further value to the tierce. He's generally honest and is naturally coming to hand in his three starts this term. Victory Power kept plugging away to just hold fourth after stalking the late-plunged leader Supreme Witness one off the fence from a wide gate. He's still a non-winner but has proven effective at both tracks and can breakthrough at any moment. Bingo Hero came on well near the outside settling second last after a tardy break to nearly grab fourth at huge odds. It was his best run to date from only six starts.

Racing Incident Report

Race One: (236) - JIM AND TONIC HANDICAP - Class 4 - 1400Meters

J Moreira (PICKEN) was fined $3,000 for failing to present himself in the Parade Ring by the required time.

In assessing penalty, the Stewards took into consideration that J Moreira had previously been penalized for a similar breach of the Rules.

SPEEDY DRAGON began only fairly.

BINGO HERO began only fairly and then shortly after the start was crowded for room between CHARIZARD and UNIVERSAL GO GO, both of which shifted ground.

HAPPY GUY shifted in at the start and bumped VICTORY POWER which began awkwardly.

From the outside barrier, SMART CHARADE was shifted across behind runners in the early stages.

Passing the 1000 Metres, HAPPY GUY was awkwardly placed close to the heels of UNIVERSAL GO GO as that horse was being steadied to obtain cover behind CHARIZARD.

Approaching the 500 Metres, HAPPY WARRIOR was bumped by NOBLE DE LOVE which shifted out.

CITY LEGEND was badly held up for clear running until near the 250 Metres.

Near the 150 Metres, CITY LEGEND raced tight inside HAPPY WARRIOR as that horse was steadied to avoid the heels of DESTIN (S Clipperton) which shifted in under pressure.

S Clipperton was advised to exercise more care in similar circumstances.

HAPPY WARRIOR raced wide and without cover throughout.

When questioned, U Rispoli stated that as CHARIZARD was stepping up in distance today and had drawn an inside barrier for the first time, he was asked to have the horse travelling where it was comfortable but not to be as far back in the field as it had been in its previous two starts.

He said CHARIZARD began well and it was his intention to attempt to shift in and race behind NOBLE DE LOVE as he expected that horse to perform well.

He said it took some time for CHARIZARD to be in a position to follow that horse and by this time it was clear to him that there were a number of horses being ridden forward from outside barriers and therefore he elected to remain racing outside NOBLE DE LOVE and obtain a position with cover.

He said whilst this resulted in CHARIZARD racing a little further forward than may have been anticipated, nonetheless he was able to obtain a good run throughout the race behind HAPPY WARRIOR.

He added however that CHARIZARD did not travel as strongly as it had when he had ridden it previously and rounding the Home Turn he had concerns as to the manner in which the horse was going to finish off the race.

He said for this reason he elected to take a run inside HAPPY WARRIOR rather than shifting to that horse's outside and follow NOBLE DE LOVE through.

He said CHARIZARD finished off the race only fairly in the Straight and he noted that the horse was blowing quite hard after the race which indicated to him that its fitness may be improved with the race.

When questioned regarding the disappointing performance of PICKEN, J Moreira stated that his mount became fractious after being placed in the barriers and reared, resulting in the horse's head possibly making contact with the overhead structure.

He said PICKEN, despite being ridden along in the early stages, was reluctant to take up a forward position and he had to ride the horse for some distance in order to have it as handy as it could be.

He said PICKEN travelled only fairly in the middle stages and then did not finish off the race as expected.

The performance of PICKEN, favourite for this race, was considered unacceptable.

Before being allowed to race again, PICKEN will be required to perform to the satisfaction of the Stewards in a barrier trial and be subjected to an official veterinary examination.

A veterinary inspection of PICKEN immediately following the race did not show any significant findings.

A veterinary inspection of UNIVERSAL GO GO and SUPREME WITNESS immediately following the race did not show any significant findings.

PICKEN, SMART CHARADE and NOBLE DE LOVE were sent for sampling.