The outstanding 2014 Brisbane Winter Racing Carnival of leading trainer Tony Gollan has continued, with Fixation scoring an upset victory in the 2014 Breakfast Creek Hotel Stakes at Eagle Farm this afternoon.
Fixation recorded his maiden race win in the Breakfast Creek Hotel Stakes at Eagle Farm this afternoon. Photo by: Daniel Costello
Paul Messara-trained Limehills started the race as a short-priced favourite and was extremely well-backed in the lead-up to the Listed event, but he missed the start and was unable to get back into the race.
The race was set up for the swoopers after Bayrock and Elitist set a quick early tempo and it was Fixation who finished over the top of his rivals to score a strong win from Homehill and Jumbo Prince.
Jockey Ryan Wiggins confirmed after the race that the plan had always been to settle Fixation towards the tail of the field and the consistent hoop paid credit to Gollan for getting so much improvement out of the Jet Spur gelding this preparation.
“It is good to win on this horse, I have a couple of good mates in this horse and he is obviously one of Tony’s and his horses are flying at the moment and it is good to be associated,” Wiggins said.
“For what this horse has done this prep, he hadn’t even won a maiden yet, and there were some good horses in there.
“We just rode him back today because in his first ever run at Ipswich he came from last and nearly run the race, so we thought that we would ride him the same way today and whatever happens, happens.
“We got a good split halfway down the straight and he was too good for him.”
Tony Gollan won two of the three feature races at Ipswich last weekend and took out a string of black type races during the 2014 Brisbane Winter Racing Carnival, including the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 with Spirit Of Boom, and was thrilled to score another Listed win with Fixation.
The leading Brisbane trainer said that he had always had a good opinion of Fixation and believes that the decision to position the two-year-old towards the tail of the field was the key to his impressive performance.
“He ran third in an Ipswich maiden and it didn’t look great form going into a 1400 metre Listed race, but I had great faith in this horse from day one,” Gollan said.
“We gave him plenty of time and he got the job done today.
“We rode him too far forward the other day and he got caught three wide in a tricky position and today we were adamant to go back, put him to sleep and let him finish off.
“He has a good finish and he is a very promising horse.”
Wiggins will have the opportunity to record another feature race win when he partners Pretty Pins in the Group 3 Tattersall’s Cup (2200m) at Eagle Farm this afternoon.
