Te Rapa visitor Flaunting coped best with the testing Heavy11 track conditions prevalent at Wanganui on Saturday as she slogged through the mud to take out the Listed John Turkington Forestry Ltd. Castletown Stakes (1200m).
The Showcasing filly had not been seen since finishing near last in the Karaka Million 2YO (1200m) at Ellerslie in January however a smart win over 800m at the Avondale trials back in May showed she was on target for a bold first-up performance. A tardy beginning saw Flaunting settle near last for rider Sam Spratt in the early stages of the contest and she was still well off the pace with 600m to run. Spratt began to pick a path between runners at that point but was still spotting a trio of leaders, that included fellow northern raiders Jager Bombed and She's A Lady, three lengths turning for home.
Once balanced up Flaunting charged between runners to hit the front at the 100m and hold out She's A Lady and Jager Bombed in a blanket finish, with the three runners separated by no more than a neck at the post. Trainer David Greene was full of praise for Flaunting's effort that secured her second victory at just her fourth start. “It was a really tough win,” he said. “She had to go back and pick a path but Sammy (Spratt) is so good at that and horses keep going for her. “I thought it was a very gutsy win.”
Given the extremely testing nature of the track, Greene is keen to press on further into the winter with another late-season two-year-old feature a possible target. “If you can handle that out there, I think you probably have to kick on for a Ryder or something like that,” he said. “We'll just tick her over quietly and have a crack at the Ryder at the end of the season.”
The Listed Ryder Stakes (1200m) is the final black-type feature of the 2018-19 racing season at Otaki on 27 July. Raced by a large group of owners Flaunting was a $40,000 purchase by Greene from the Haunui Farm draft during the Book 2 session at the 2018 National Yearling Sale. She is the daughter of useful racemare Acapela who won four races during a brief career. The victory also provided further glory for former Haunui Farm stallion, Showcasing, with Flaunting becoming his third individual two-year-old stakes winner for the season.