Samaready Storms Home To Score Dominant Moir Stakes Win

Classy mare Samaready capped off a remarkable training performance from Mick Price by winning the Group 1 Moir Stakes (1200m) in dominant fashion at Moonee Valley tonight.

Samaready wins Moir Stakes

Samaready scores a dominant win in the Group 1 Moir Stakes at Moonee Valley. Photo by Race Horse Photos Australia

The More Than Ready mare circled the field around the outside and raced away in the final stages of the event to record a four lengths victory from a typically brave Buffering, who finished second at Group 1 level for the sixth time, and stablemate Le Bonsir.

Samaready missed a year of racing, after she was injured when finishing fourth in the 2012 Quezette Stakes (1100m) last year, and Price was forced to slowly nurture her back to peak racing fitness.

Price was thrilled with the victory and in typically modest fashion was quick to pay credit to managing co-owner Peter Orton from Vinery Stud who helped him get the valuable mare through her career- threatening injury and illness.

“Peter Orton has done a good job with her after she hurt her hindquarter; he wouldn’t let her out of Vinery and we had to be patient with her,” Price said.

“I was really glad that we were left alone on to make our own decisions because the mares race last week was tempting but when you have a good horses you don’t really like to take a backwards step so we thought that we would have a crack here.

“I thought it was a very valiant and brave win from the mare and it was great to see her physically look well.

“I am just really wrapped that she can race in this company and race properly.”

The victory was Samaready’s second win at the highest level of racing, after her win in the 2012 Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) but Price was already looking ahead to another event at the highest level of racing.

“The Manikato Stakes will be her next main goal,” Price said.

“I think that the time between runs will be good for her and I don’t have a good feeling about the Patinack down the straight for some reason.”

Jockey Craig Newitt has ridden Samaready in all eight of her career starts and was delighted to get another win at Group 1 level on a mare that clearly means a great deal to him.

“She has been a very good filly and mare to me,” Newitt said.

“She was pretty arrogant tonight; she won with a lot in hand.

“We always hoped but well down to Mick and his staff to get her back to the way that she is; she has come back bigger and better.”

Newitt admitted that he put a lot of thought into where he was going to position Samaready during the run but was thrilled with the run the four-year-old got in transit.

“I was scratching my head the last couple of days trying to work the race out; every speed map I came up I was going to be three deep midfield.

“I ended up in the spot I thought I was going to be and she was there for me when I asked her.”

Newitt was celebrating his second victory in the Moir Stakes after winning the 2007 edition of the race with glamour mare Miss Andretti.

About The Author

Thomas Hackett

Thomas is a passionate and opinionated racing journalist and punter who has been obsessed with horse racing since he backed Saintly to win the 1996 Melbourne Cup. An international racing enthusiast, he has his finger on the pulse of racing news not just from Australia but all around the world.