Driver Luke McCarthy with A. G. Hunter Cup winner Bling It On.
A great horse enjoyed his crowning moment when Bling It On mowed down the best to claim a barnstorming Del-Re National A. G. Hunter Cup.
Too often the bridesmaid on the open-age Grand Circuit, the John McCarthy-trained and Luke McCarthy-driven speedster was positioned perfectly, having allowed Lennytheshark and Smolda to trade haymakers and when his moment came he was in a class of his own.
“It’s special,” Luke McCarthy said. “As a young person in harness racing you grow up watching all the great horses and the good drivers and you see Anthony Butt and Chris Alford and all of them guys who have had such good records in the race and you just aspire to win these sort of races.
“We’ve been lucky enough to have some good horses and to win the Hunter Cup is a really special time.”
It was a result well enjoyed, including by part-owner Sammy Kilgour, whose late mother, Kaye, played a lead role in the champ’s breeding.
“It’s so great, mum was definitely looking down on us and she would be so proud,” Ms Kilgour said.
From gate five, Bling It On gradually worked forward, with McCarthy three-wide for some time before taking the lead from Yayas Hot Spot, and then favourite Smolda made his move.
“The draw was so important, we had the draw on Lenny and Smolda to be in front of them for once and put ourselves in a good spot,” McCarthy said.
“I would have been happy to stay in front of them, (Bling It On’s) a really good leader, but when Mark (Purdon) come (with Smolda) he come pretty hard and I knew it was going to be pretty serious from then on, I didn’t really have a choice but to sit on him and it worked out really well.”
While Bling It On sat parked, Lennytheshark joined Smolda at the head of the field at the bell, and they followed the 29.7 first quarter with a 29.3 second quarter.
And then they stepped on the gas, pouring on a 27.5 third quarter in a last lap war. While others battled to stay in touch, Bling It On didn’t miss a step and when the sprint lane opened he had plenty left, blazing to a 6m win from Yayas Hot Spot with Lennytheshark finishing third, 11.4m back.
“I was jogging,” McCarthy said. “He was just travelling so well. In the running he didn’t have to burn early, we knew he would come that last half.
“Around the (last) corner he was just travelling so well and we got into the sprint lane and he went really well.”
A 27.8 last quarter sealed the deal for the American Ideal six-year-old out of Aldatglitterzisgold.
“He had his first start on the 30th of January at Bankstown and he won and I knew we had something special that day,” McCarthy said.
“To be racing at this level now, he’s come right through as a two, three, four and five-year-old and now he’s won a Hunter Cup, (which) brings his earnings to well over one and a half million.
“This is why we are in the industry, why we get out of bed and work the horses every day, it’s just because of horses like this.”
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