Australia’s second-best sprinter won the country’s best sprint race and a plodding English stayer was transformed into a dashing weight-for-age star on a Super Saturday at Flemington that had the lot.
Hay List’s victory in the Group One Newmarket Hcp (1200m) proved his status as second only to Black Caviar in the short races and was surely one of the most well-deserved big-race wins in decades.
For Manighar, twice a runner in the Melbourne Cup when prepared by Luca Cumani, success in the Group One Australian Cup (2000m) proved his versatility and demonstrated the genius of his new trainer, Peter Moody.
And as well as the two major race winners, All Too Hard, who took out the Group Two Sires’ Produce Stakes, announced himself as potentially the most valuable horse in the land.
Hay List has now won 15 races and almost $2.5 million.
His record also includes five seconds – four of them behind the world champion Black Caviar.
“But we’re not talking about her today,” part-owner Katie Davenport said after the Newmarket.
“Hay List is a very, very good horse and he showed it today.”
In the Australian Cup Manighar also showed he was a much better than average horse – and that his trainer is as good as there is.
Manighar was transferred to Moody after finishing fifth in last year’s Melbourne Cup and has duly been turned into a different horse.
“He’s really enjoyed what’s happening in Australia,” Moody said.
Manighar beat the Caulfield Cup winner Southern Speed into second place by a nose with the 2010 Melbourne Cup winner Americain a neck further back in third.
As worthy as Hay List and Manighar may be, no horse on Super Saturday ran better than All Too Hard, the two-year-old half-brother of Black Caviar.
A $1.025 million purchase by coal mining magnate Nathan Tinkler, All Too Hard scored by four lengths to take his record to two from two and earn high praise from his trainer John Hawkes who placed him on a par with his superstars Octagonal and Lonhro at the same age.
“I’ve trained a few good colts over the years,” Hawkes said.
“He’s right up there with them.”
All Too Hard will tackle at least one of Sydney’s big three two-year-old races and victory in any of them would give him a value approaching that of his owner.
AAP TURF
