Patinack Farm's emerging reputation in
Queensland gathered further momentum after claiming the Listed Tattersall's
Mile with Hour Of Peril at Eagle Farm on Saturday.
Wet track
specialist Hour Of Peril, ridden by Jeff Lloyd, careered away for a two lengths
win over Topping with Carry Me Bluey, a half-head
away third.
Patinack
Farm's head trainer John Thompson and Lloyd combined earlier this month to win
the Listed Grafton Cup with Shamardashing after celebrating their first G1
victory in last month's Tatt's Tiara at Eagle Farm with Pear Tart.
Lloyd, who
also won last month's G2 Queensland Guineas on Pear Tart, rode in Sydney with
great success before riding in Hong Kong for the past three years.
The
international rider decided to return to Australia and settled at Hope
Island on the Gold Coast in May for his children's education.
Lloyd's
shrewd judgement paid off in spades when he allowed Hour Of Peril to settle
well back in the field in the slushy conditions before taking a run on the
inside as his rivals skirted for firmer footing out wide.
"We were near the back of the field and
just took our time," Lloyd said.
"He
won a good race early in his prep over 1200 and I knew he had a good turn of
foot.
"It
was just a matter of switching him off early. He is definitely a lot better on
a wet track.
"He
gets through it and he quickens well which a lot of horses can’t do on that
sort of surface."
Hour Of Peril's win came as no great surprise
to stable foreman Brett Killion.
"He loves soft going. He can sprint on
it and as you saw today he was near last on the turn and came through strongly,"
Killion said.
"I wasn’t overly surprised that he won.
We knew he had the ability and I knew he would hit the line well.
"He’s had little luck in his last
couple of starts. He got held up once and then last time he came second to an
in-form mare in Fire Up Fifi.
"He got the going that he needed today
and the speed was on which suited him. He got the job done well."
Belltone led into the straight but plans to
head to Melbourne for the spring are in doubt after the gelding compounded to
finish a well beaten seventh.
Racing Queensland webnews July 21
Photo: Trackside Photography
