Multiple Group 1 winner Boban came with a late burst to take out the Group 1 $750,000 James Boag’s Premium Doomben 10,000 (1350m) at Doomben today.
Boban was able to score a first up victory in the Doomben 10,000 at Doomben. Photo by Daniel Costello.
Jockey Glyn Schofield was able to secure a split in between runners to grab a narrow win over the well backed Charlie Boy and the consistent Generalife.
Champion Sydney trainer Chris Waller had set Boban for a first up assault on the weight for age Doomben 10000 and the five year old was able give the premiership winning trainer his twelfth Group 1 for the 2014 – 2015 racing season.
Boban was the winner of three Group 1 races before today but hadn’t been in the winner’s stall since taking out the 2014 Group 1 $500,000 Chipping Norton Stakes (1600m) at Warwick Farm during the Sydney Autumn Carnival.
His other Group 1 wins were the $500,000 The Star Epsom (1600m) at Randwick and the $1m Emirates Stakes (1600m) at Flemington during the 2013 Spring Carnival.
Boban wasn’t well fancied in the betting and was sent our at the healthy odds of $17 but his class shown through at the end to hold off the strong finished of the Peter and Paul Snwoden trained Charlie Boy ($18) and the well fancied Generalife ($7.50).
As is his usual racing pattern, Boban was settled in the second half of the field and Schofield was able find clear space in between runners with the three placegetters going to the line locked together.
Boban was able to get the judge’s decision by a short head with a nose separating Charlie Boy and Generalife.
The Ciaron Maher trained Srikandi was sent out the $6 favourite and after enjoying the run of the race third on the fence looked the winner when Damian Browne let her stride up to the front runners but her run was only short lived and she faded to finish sixth.
Our Boy Machi ($7.50) was another of the well fancied runners who fail to figure in the finish and after trailing the leaders into the straight struggled in the run to the line and filed to beat a runner home.
Waller will now decide if he runs Boban in the Group 1 $2m AAMI Stradbroke Handicap (1350m) at Doomben in two weeks or put him away before preparing him for another Spring campaign.
“He is a great horse and he has been very good to us,” Waller said.
“He is going to get the top weight (in the Stradbroke) and that makes it hard.”
“He only just won by a small margin today, so I don’t know. I’ll have a talk to the owners.
“He is only five. It is not as if to say he has to run in two weeks time and he has to be retired.”
“So I would be leaning towards giving him a good proper spell and the same again in the Spring.”
“Pick off the right race and continue having some fun.”
