Spa’s Dancer

Spa’s Dancer ran a cracker to finish second in the Zetland Gold Cup at Redcar on Monday.

Held up at the rear of the field by Graham Lee through the early stages of the race, he made nice progress towards the leaders from the top of the home straight.  Travelling best of all a furlong and a half from home, he moved out to challenge and he picked up nicely, but Cashpoint picked up as well in front.  Spa’s Dancer spent the entire of the final furlong trying to get past his rival, but he just couldn’t, and he went down by a neck in the end, the pair of them three lengths clear of their rivals.

James Eustace’s horse did well to come from behind and get into the race.  He was the only horse who was able to get into it from the rear – the other three horses who, with him, filled the first four places all raced handily. It is a little bit of a worry that he didn’t go past Cashpoint after getting there and looking the more likely winner, but he did pull clear of the third horse, and it may have been that the winner just kept finding.  The other possibility is that the 10-furlong trip just stretched his stamina.  All his previous wins had been over seven furlongs or a mile, and this was just his second attempt at a distance in excess of a mile.

He will be of interest again now returned to a mile.  Also, interestingly, all his three wins on turf (from 35 attempts) have been at Sandown (where his overall record reads 421341321) over a mile, so he will be of most interest when he returns to the Esher track.

26th May 2014