Im Victorious On Target For Golden Nugget And Chariots Of Fire

The happy connections of Im Victorious after qualifying for the $25,000 M0 Final at the end of the month at Gloucester Park. Photo by Bill Crabb.

Sensational four-year-old Im Victorious is well on truly on target of adding the Golden Nugget Championship to his WA Derby success last April.

He gave an awesome display to score a runaway win in the TABForm Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night to qualify for the $25,000 final for M0-class performers in a fortnight.

Serpentine trainer Michael Brennan has brought The New Zealand-bred Im Victorious back after a spell in magnificent condition and the gelding was a hot 3/1 on favourite at his second appearance after a spell in Friday night’s event, despite starting from the outside of the back line.                      

Black N Bettor, second favourite at 4/1, was smartest into stride from barrier two on the front line, while Justin Prentice gave Im Victorious time to settle before starting a three-wide move from the rear after 500m.

Im Victorious then was kept out three wide for more than a lap by Heisbackinblack, who was racing in the breeze. But Prentice did not lose his composure and he was content to let Im Victorious cover extra ground before the gelding got his head in front of Black N Bettor 300m from home. Im Victorious then raced away from his rivals and won, hard held, by 7m from 33/1 chance Extreme Bromac, who finished doggedly after racing in the one-out, one-back position. A nose away in third place was Black n Bettor.

Im Victorious sped over the final 800m in 58.4sec. and rated 1.58.4 over the 2100m journey. He has raced only ten times for nine wins and one second for prizemoney of $221,920. His only defeat was when he was beaten by 2m by Gracias Para Nada in the Caduceus Club Classic last March.

The $175,000 Lancaster Park Golden Nugget will be run at Gloucester Park on December 7. Providing the pacer retains his outstanding form Brennan will take him to Sydney to contest the rich Chariots Of Fire next March.

Last week, the NSW Harness Racing Club annouced that the winner of the Lancaster Park Golden Nugget will gain automatic entry into the $200,000 Chariots Of Fire on Inter Dominion Grand Final day, adding even more importance to the Western Australian four-year-old feature.