Barnaby Cruises To First Win

New trip and an immediate upturn in fortunes for Barnaby. The 3yo gelding had been running ok in recent races, finishing off strongly and suggesting a step up in trip may be in order. Unfortunately the ground has turned and Barnaby had to wait but it was worth it. Reverting to the Tapeta of Newcastle, Barnaby took the Quinnbet Second To The SP Favourite Handicap over 7f.

Soldier’s Call was a real speedster in his racing days and certainly looked to have passed on the sprinting genes to Barnaby in terms of looks. As it turned out, the 3yo sin’t quite as sharp and having stayed on late in his last few races, stepped up to 7f to try and gain maiden success. There were 13 going to post for the contest and Tom Eaves was in the saddle.

Settled immediately after leaving the stalls, Barnaby drifted over from his draw on the far side. It was an even pace which allowed Tom to track over and race in midfield, as the field raced more towards the near side. Racing just in behind the pace, Barnaby got into a smooth rhythm through the early stages.

Well strung out, the field arced through the first half with a good distance from the leader to the back marker. Tom had plenty of daylight positioned on the outer of the field which gave Barnaby a clear look when the time was right. The long time leader quickly weakened as they passed the 2f marker as the tempo increased. Barnaby cruised to the fore and Tom had to check his wing mirrors to see what his rivals were doing.

Under pressure, the rest of the finishers were battling between themselves but Tom was taking a pull. Barnaby was full of running as he held the lead and as the final furlong loomed, Tom just asked his mount to move up the gears. Barnaby quickened up and passing the 1f marker, kicked clear. The race was over, there was no stopping the gelding as he opened up a clear advantage. Seeing out every yard of the 7f, Barnaby took the contest by a cosy 1 3/4 lengths.

It was nice to see the 3yo get his head in front and in the manner in which he did. The 7f proved to be no issue at all and Barnaby was strong at the line. There are plenty of races on the all-weather at this level and it would be no surprise to see the gelding out again before too long. Hopefully this can provide the building blocks to go on from here.