Legendary trainer Gai Waterhouse was clearly enjoying herself at Flemington after her decision to send Tremonti to Melbourne produced immediate results.
Not long after scoring a trifecta in the Group 3 Breeders’ Plate (1000m) at Randwick, the Waterhouse and Adrian Bott team then collected the prize in the first two-year-old race in Melbourne with Tremonti’s win in the Listed Maribyrnong Trial Stakes (1000m).
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Gai Waterhouse pumped after Tremonti wins at Flemington.
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Headed by the runner-up inside the final 200m, Tremonti ($4.20) fought back under Jye McNeil to score by a neck from Shining Smile ($10) with the $3.60 favourite Price Tag a neck away third.
Waterhouse celebrated the win with a big thumbs up to the cameras, and was ecstatic when she spoke to Seven’s Jason Richardson after the race.
“We ran second in Doomben, trifecta’d the Breeders’ Plate in Sydney, and we’ve won the Maribyrnong Plate here today
“I can’t tell you … I loved, Jason, the way (Tremonti) was beaten half a furlong before the line and he just pulled up his socks and went whack,” Waterhouse said to Richardson.
Richardson cheekily noted that the horse showed “speed and then he showed tenacity”, borrowing from the famous Waterhouse vernacular.
Waterhouse: “Oh, you’ve learnt those words.”
Richo: “I learnt them from you.”
Waterhouse also praised her jockey, saying Jye McNeil “was smart enough to take advantage of gate one to just give him that guiderail”.
“It was a big help, especially with horses coming from interstate,” she said.
Waterhouse said the decision was made to send Tremonti to Melbourne to split their two-year-old colts after having four starters in the Breeders’ Plate.
Besides winning the Breeders’ Plate with King Kirk, the stable also produced the runner-up, as well at the third and fifth placed horses in the field of eight.
“We thought that he would be very well placed down here,” Waterhouse said of Tremonti.
“He ran second behind the horse that was favourite for the Breeders’ Plate, and they ran the fastest time (in their trial), so we thought he’d represent the stable very well here.”
With Tremonti now having had the straight track experience, Waterhouse said the Group 3 Maribyrnong Plate (1000m) at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day was potentially Tremonti’s next appearance.
“I’ll speak to Adrian and see what he wants to do,” Waterhouse said.
– With RASNewswire
