Swayzee - Victorian Cup Win - Jason Grimson & Cameron Hart Photo by Stuart McCormick
MIGHTY stayer Swayzee is a glorious sight in full flight.
We first saw it when he downed a luckless Leap To Fame (he copped a flat tyre) in last year's Blacks A Fake at Albion Park.
Swayzee then won the ultimate staying test in this part of the world, the iconic NZ Cup, at Addington last November.
The six-year-old went at least as well as he did in either of those epic wins when he crushed his rivals into submission at Melton last Saturday night.
That $300,000 Group 1 Victoria Cup win was something to behold.
Coming from the back row and working around the field in a sizzling lead time, Swayzee then attacked leader and main danger Mach Dan for the lead and forced his way to the front.
At a time when almost every horse would have been gasping, driver Cam Hart asked Swayzee for more coming off the back straight, and he gave plenty.
"He still felt good then. I knew he'd done plenty of work, but I know from past experiences he keeps giving for you when he's been bowling along in front like that. He's a beast," Hart said.
Swayzee did find plenty and easily held on to beat his Jason Grimson-trained stablemate Curly James by four metres in a blistering 1min51.8sec mile rate for 2240m. It was just 0.4sec outside the track record.
It was only Swayzee's second run in an Australian Grand Circuit race this year, and he bettered his brave second to Leap To Fame in the Group 1 Blacks A Fake at Albion Park on July 27.
The 100 points he banked for the Victoria Cup win, combined with the 60 from the Blacks A Fake, moved the big striding gelding into a clear second spot on the Grand Circuit table.
Leap To Fame, courtesy of his Hunter Cup, Miracle Mile and Blacks A Fake wins, still holds an unbeatable lead on the points table with two legs to go. He has 300 points.
The sixth leg of the series is the $450,000 Group 1 WA Pacing Cup at Gloucester Park, but Leap To Fame and Swayzee will not be involved.
The two big guns, who are also half-brothers, look set to lock horns next in the $500,000 Group 1 Sydney Inter Dominion final at Menangle on December 14.
In the meantime, Swayzee will return to his quest to land a $1 million bonus by winning all five legs of the NSW Carnival of Cups series.
He won the first leg at Parkes and now heads to the second leg at Young on November 8.
