Falino continued a tough day for punters at the Sunshine Coast when he worked home strongly to take out the 2015 Bribie Handicap this afternoon.
Falino scores upset win in the Bribie Handicap at the Sunshine Coast. Photo by Daniel Costello.
There was plenty of early speed in the Bribie Handicap and Rocky King, Craiglea Cruz, Thinkhesaurus and Diamond Oasis were all spread across the track in the front of the field for the Listed event.
It looked as though the four leaders were going to clear off and fight out the finish, with Thinkhesaurus looking like the most likely winner, but the early speed meant that the race was always going to be set up for the backmarkers.
Jockey Brad Stewart timed his run on Falino to perfection and the Darren Bell-trained gelding hit the front at the 100 metre and held-off a flying Seeking More to record the biggest win of his racing career to date.
Falino was having just the second race start of his autumn preparation after finishing seventh behind Mr Favulous in the Listed Weetwood Handicap (1200m) at Toowoomba on May 2 and he could press on to a race like the Listed Eye Liner Stakes (1350m) at Ipswich on June 13.
Seeking More’s Bribie Handicap continued a string of consistent performances from the Sequalo gelding, but he has not recorded a race win since he took out the Jim Beam Handicap (1110m) at Doomben in April last year.
The five-year-old finished third behind Big Money and Cape Kidnappers in the Group 3 W.J. Healy Stakes (1200m) at Eagle Farm on June 21 and he was only narrowly beaten in the Constructions Skills Queensland Handicap (1050m) at Doomben on November 22, the Quest Breakfast Creek Handicap (1050m) at the same venue on December 6 and the Magic Millions Sprint (1100m) at the Gold Coast on January 10.
Seeking More started his winter campaign with a second place finish in the Coastline BMW Handicap (1000m) at the Sunshine Coast on March 11 and he was almost able to upset Craftiness in the Bryon Spurling’s Last Stand Handicap (1050m) at Doomben on March 28 before he finished an unlucky fifth in the Listed Chief De Beers Quality (1110m) at the same venue on April 11.
Office Bearer rounded out the $6500 trifecta in third position in what was his first race start since he finished eighth behind Decircles in the Group 3 Standish Handicap (1200m) at Flemington on New Year’s Day.
