The new-look team have fallen a smidgen down the pecking order in the Vic metro standings, but have struck this spring courtesy of their in-form mare Zayydani ($12). It’s been a new dawn for the Hayes team at Lindsay Park after a shake-up in their training ranks with JD joining brother Ben, and Tom Dabernig going solo at Warrnambool. Bred by Mungrup Stud & the 3rd stakes winner for the late Red Hot Choice, Hot Zed is closely related to 3-time G1 winner Behemoth & has now won 7 from 16. What a brilliant finish to the Listed Carbine Club of WA Stakes at Ascot with Hot Zed edging out Son of a God in a thriller. Hot Zed has now won seven of 16 starts, placing on a further six occasions. Hot Zed did get the win in the end, with a margin of just 0.06L separating the pair. For much of the run to the line, Hot Zed, who was smashed in betting ($3.40 into $2.15), looked the most likely, but Son Of A God on the inside wouldn't lie down. The two locked horns down the straight in a stirring battle.
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Punters had the Carbine Club of WA Stakes down to a race in two - Hot Zed and Son Of A God - and that's how it panned out.
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La Farola ($26) caused the upset, denying Pike a sixth win on the Railway card. Punters kept their faith in the Pike in the last with God Has Chosen sent around as the $2.05 favourite, but again there was some late traffic issues. In the Jungle Mist Classic, Riding Bright DIamond ($2.80F), he ran into a dead end at the 150m as Angelic Miss ($3.10) charged home out wider. The only real blemishes came post the Railway.
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He then took out the features - the WA Guineas and of course the Railway. His first three rides produced wins, aboard Pure Devotion ($1.65F), Expressionist ($5.50) and Proconsent ($2.50F). The Wizard of the West headed to Ascot with a tantalising book of rides and William Pike walked away with five winners in the bag. Treasured Star defies a late drift to take out the WA Guineas for Grant & Alana Williams! That's Pike's 4th winner for the day ? /PNFZ0xM8mG Chris Parnham got Buzzoom onto the back of Treasured Star turning for home, but she couldn't match the sprint of the Grant and Alana Williams filly, finishing 3.79L off Treasured Star in fifth position. There was good support for Buzzom ($5.50 into $3.20), but a poor start saw the Daniel Morton filly at the tail of the field early. Enjoying a strong tempo over the mile, the Toronado filly made her charge from the second half of the field, storming past the tiring front runners to go and defeat Stay Safe ($41) by 1.75L. But Peters got to see what Treasured Star ($2.90F) was capable of on Saturday. Her most recent start in the Listed Burgess Queen Stakes on Melbourne Cup day had been a horror show, finishing a most unlucky fifth to Buzzoom. She entered the G2 WA Guineas as a winner of a maiden and a Class 3. He knew Treasured Star was a talented filly, but he needed to see her produce it in a big race. That was arrogant! Western Empire absolutely dominates the Group 1 Railway Stakes! Another feature for William Pike ?♂️ /VQMxeZnFMrįor owner Bob Peters, seeing is believing. And while this year's race featured only the locals, it would've required a bloody good horse from the east to have mixed it with Western Empire. The win made it four straight Railway's for the all-conquering Williams/Pike/Peters combination. In-form 5YO Comfort Me ($31) finished second with Kissonallforcheeks ($7) a further 1.5L away in third. The 4YO made it six on the trot, thumping the field by four lengths. When he asked for an effort, the race was over in a flash. By the turn, the majority of the Railway runners behind Western Empire were under enormous pressure, while the Grant and Alana Williams gelding was trucking and Pike got to the outside.
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Helped by a low draw, connections planned to have Western Empire closer to the speed to help avoid any trouble. Pike landed the hot favourite in the perfect trailing position one-off the fence. Far from a weak link of course, Pike delivered a textbook ride. "I knew I had the horse to get the job done and I thought if there was only one weak link, it would be me," Pike joked after Western Empire strolled to a dominant victory. There was plenty of expectation on Western Empire, who as the $1.55 favourite started as the shortest-priced favourite in Railway history. Star Performer Western Empire (Railway Stakes)