Jadahson shoots past Sushi Sushi on his way to victory in the Shakamaker Classic
It seems absurd to be talking Victoria Derby contenders 11 months out from the next edition of Australia’s oldest pacing Classic, but Friday night’s Blue Ribbon Foundation Shakamaker Classic could prove a key pointer.
Blueblood colt Jadahson, the first foal of former Australian Mare of the Year, Jadah Rose, showed that he had inherited plenty of her mother’s ability with an impressive win at Melton’s Tabcorp Park.
Trainer Emma Stewart declared before the race that the son of Falcon Seelster would be a much better suited as a three-year-old, but that didn’t stop him from winning one of Victoria’s premier two-year-old races.
Champion reinsman Chris Alford agreed and said it was a promising sign that Jadahson was able to win an early feature at just his third start given the expected improvement to come.
“He did a good job and once he gets a bit bigger and stronger he’ll be not a bad horse,” Alford said. “There’s no doubt whatever he does this season he’ll be a lot better next year.”
The $8 chance made the most of a lovely run on the back of leader Sushi Sushi to sprint-lane to victory in the 2240-metre event.
He held off unlucky Devilish Smile ($11), who flashed home after having trouble getting a clear run in the straight, by a half-head with Sushi Sushi ($5.50) less than two metres away in third spot in a 1:59.5 mile rate.
Heavily-spruiked $1.60 favourite Courage Tells was forced to sit three-wide for most of the trip and did a good to beat three rivals home, just over 12m from the winner.
“Everything panned out well with the nice run and the favourite getting stuck out and doing a bit of work,” Alford said.
“He felt really strong at the top of the straight. It took him a while to get into the sprint lane but once he got there he wasn’t going to stop.”
Jadahson’s win was part of a stellar night for Alford, who followed up with victory aboard Alby Albert having scored earlier in the night with Island Tango.