The Stayers Challenge Juvenile Qualifiers were the feature of Sunday evening’s card from the virtual horse racing tracks at Raceclubs. Highly competitive and well-supported as usual, the colts’ contest produced two full field instances for spectators to savor.
The second instance of this turned out to be a battle between the two pre-race favorites, Herminator and Gallipoli Prince with the former eventually prevailing. This was Herminator’s third win in just seven career starts and his second successive victory in stayers qualifiers, having won the equivalent event just two weeks ago. Divine Diva Stables’ Little Assassin finished third here and Liveoak Stables’ Nashville Boy was fourth.
The current standings for the final of this event, now just over a month away, show Nashville Boy to be a narrow one point leader over Green Bay Stables‘ Herminator. Gissys Nags’ Gallipoli Prince is just three points further behind and slowstables’ Priego De Cordoba five points behind him in fourth spot.
The Stayers Challenge Juvenile Qualifier Fillies was a tight looking affair. Divine Diva Stables’ Island Diva was a five time winner and amongst the point leaders in the current standings for the final of this event. Prior to this race had been placed three times in qualifiers but had yet to get her head in front in one. Diamond Class had also managed to achieve a third place finish in a previous qualifier. The one the punters latched onto though was Queen Bee’s Flashing Cobra. Never out of the money in seven career starts to date, the bay filly had finished second in each of her last three races, all of which were stayers qualifiers.
Flashing Cobra did not find any luck in running on this occasion, however and she could manage only sixth place under Philippe Dubois. Expect better from this filly in the near future. The one that foiled them all today though was Liveoak Stables’ Le Petit Blanc. After this marathon journey, she scraped home by the narrowest of margins, getting home by a neck from Celtic Bhoys Diamond Class with Island Diva back in third.
The overall standings now have Island Diva in a three point lead over shotgun_mike’s Dilly Dally and a further three points back to Miami Vice’s Regency Blaze in third.