Trainer Gavin Sharrock rocked punters once again with another promising young horse from his Stratford -based operation when Country Salon (NZ) (Darci Brahma) overcame a slow start to bury his race rivals late in the piece as he took out the Ladies Man 2YO (1200m) on a testing Heavy 10 surface at Trentham.
The son of Darci Brahma had been fancied on debut when finishing fifth at Waverley last month behind Saturday’s race favourite Belzoni (NZ) (Belardo). That experience did him the world of good although those who supported him at $12 on the Fixed Odds market would have been holding their breath as he was slow to move for rider Jim Chung and trailed the field in a slowly run race until the 600m.
Chung then sent the gelding around runners to issue a challenge approaching the home bend, where he still had several lengths to make up on Belzoni, his stablemate Under Orders (NZ) (War Decree) and well fancied debutant Transcend (So You Think).
Just as Transcend look to have mastered the other two, Country Salon dug deep and with a couple of huge bounds levelled up and took over to win by a long neck at the line.
Sharrock, who had also taken out another juvenile contest with Spandeedo (NZ) (Ferrando) at Hawera on Tuesday, was delighted with the effort.
“I love working with the two-year-olds and this was one was unlucky at Waverley as he got knocked over and still ran fifth,” Sharrock said
.
“The instructions were to teach him as he over-raced in front last time and he will learn something today.
“His mother won a race on a Heavy 10 so he might be another one we target for the Castletown Stakes (Listed, 1200m on 20 June).
Chung was also impressed by the effort.
“He sat back in the gates and missed the jump, but that may have been a good thing as he got to come around them and get out into the middle of the track,” he said.”
“He hit the line well as it took him a while to wind up but he did it nicely in the end.
Bred and raced by Sharrock, Country Salon is out of the Ferlax mare Uniquebotique (NZ) who is a daughter of Gr.3 Gasmate Stakes (1600m) winner Sokool (NZ) (Bin Ajwaad) and has dual Australian Group One winner Prince Salieri (Salieri) in his extended dam line.