Little-known six-year-old My Copy emerged from beyond the shadow of his illustrious half-brother Copy That with a strong frontrunning display to win the $21,000 Barbagallo Volvo Pace over 1730m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
At his previous appearance, a week earlier, he was a despised $151 outsider who finished seventh behind Blazing Reactor. On Friday night from the No. 4 barrier, he was the $4.30 favourite after firming in from $13 on the fixed market.
Veteran reinsman Lindsay Harper dashed My Copy straight to the front, and after modest opening quarters of 30.1sec. and 30.7sec. the New Zealand-bred gelding sprinted over the final 400m sections in 28.9sec. and 28.2sec. to beat $23 chance Machane Said by 2m at a 1.56.9 rate.
A winner at seven of his 57 New Zealand starts, My Copy arrived in WA in August 2024 and was unplaced at his first five starts in WA before Friday night’s event.
He now has earned $102,802 from eight wins and ten placings from 63 starts --- a far cry from his outstanding half-brother Copy That, who amassed $2,019,937 from 33 wins and 18 placings from 68 starts before being retired to stud.
Copy That, by champion American sire American Ideal, is the first foal out of Live Or Die mare Lively Nights, who raced 47 times for seven wins, 13 placings and $45,268. My Copy is by former star New Zealand pacer Highview Tommy, and he is the third foal out of Lively Nights.
My Copy is owned by John and Debbie Padberg and is trained by Mrs Padberg, who said that she and her husband had purchased a share in the pacer after leading WA trainer Michael Young had bought him from New Zealand in August last year.
“Michael couldn’t get him going because he was a bit of a bleeder, and then he went to Gary Hall jnr and then on to Corey Peterson to train,” said Mrs Padberg.
“My Copy bled during a warm-up for Corey in a race at Pinjarra early in June this year and was withdrawn and was stood down for three months. The other owners, about five of them, were not interested in the horse anymore, so they signed him over to us, which was nice of them.
“I have had him since the bleeding attack and have nursed him back to good health.”
