Tempt Me Not Makes All In PJ Bell Stakes

Tempt Me Not bounced back to her best form with a most impressive front-running victory in the 2016 PJ Bell Stakes at Royal Randwick this afternoon.

Tempt Me Not produced a career best performance to take out the PJ Bell Stakes at Royal Randwick this afternoon. Photo by: Steve Hart

Tempt Me Not produced a career best performance to take out the PJ Bell Stakes at Royal Randwick this afternoon. Photo by: Steve Hart

Tempt Me Not failed to impress in the Listed Fireball Stakes (1100m) at Royal Randwick on March 5 and she went into the PJ Bell Stakes as a $22 chance, despite winning a barrier trial at Warwick Farm on March 22.

Glyn Schofield elected to roll forward on Tempt Me Not in the PJ Bell Stakes and she put a gap on her rivals when she was asked for extra effort before holding off a fast-finishing Pearls to record the biggest win of her racing career to date.

Schofield has ridden Tempt Me Not in the majority of her race starts and he was delighted to have steered the daughter of Strategic Maneuver to a maiden victory at black-type level.

“I have been with her all the way through outside of suspensions and she has been really honest without getting there,” Schofield said.

“She had a lot to do from the outside barrier, but we got across and we didn’t spend much petrol to get there.

“She filled her tanks and coming into the straight she was just travelling so sweetly for me.

“I had the fortune of being able to sit and wait until I got over the rise and I asked her to quicken up and she responded straight away.”

James Cummings elected to give Tempt Me Not a month between runs following her flat effort in the Fireball Stakes and that decision paid dividends in a big way at Royal Randwick this afternoon.

Cummings said that he was always confident that Tempt Me Not would be able to breakthrough at Group level and he confirmed that she could press on to races like the Group 3 Carr Stakes (1400m) at Royal Randwick on April 16 or the Listed Denise’s Joy Stakes (1100m) at Scone on May 14.

“We are thrilled as a stable to be able to get here on the big day and deliver,” Cummings said.

“We put ourselves in a really good position here with a filly a month between runs and she had a really slick trial at Warwick Farm in between.

“It is great to get that Stakes win for a filly out of that Encosta mare and I guarantee that this filly will throw a good horse herself one day.

“We can either go to the JB Carr in a fortnight if we are confident that she can stretch out to 1400, but our gut feeling has always been that 1100 or 1200 metres just about sees her out.

“We could freshen up for the Denise’s Joy at Scone, there are a few options up our sleeves and we know we have her in the zone.”

Pearls bounced back to a semblance of her best form to finish second in the PJ Bell Stakes, while Egyptian Symbol produced another consistent performance to finish third.

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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.