Tasmanian trainer Mick Burles marvelled at the toughness of The Cleaner and then started dreaming of feature spring success after the gelding’s gutsy win at Moonee Valley on Saturday.
The Cleaner is known for his bold front-running style but had company during the Jeep Don’t Hold Back Handicap (1600m) with First Course going with the favourite in the first half of the race as they cleared out by six lengths on the field.
The Cleaner
The Cleaner ($2.30) got the better of First Course with about 600m to run but as the Mick Price-trained Fast And Free emerged to give chase, Burles and The Cleaner’s jockey Noel Callow thought their charge was in trouble.
The seven-year-old rallied and wasn’t going to be denied, defeating Fast And Free by 1-1/4 lengths with First Course sticking on gamely to finish another long head away.
“He’s so tough,” Burles said.
“I thought he was really gone at the 600 (metres) when that other horse took him on. But he digs deep.
“I’m quite happy for them to take him on, because I think they will come undone before he does.”
Burles will now aim The Cleaner at the Group Two Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes over the same course and distance at weight-for-age next month.
“I think he is up to it. I would love for him to get a Group win behind him,” Burles said.
And the trainer is even dreaming of a possible Cox Plate tilt.
“Who knows. If he wins the Dato, he’s automatically in it,” he said.
Callow was having his first ride on The Cleaner and felt the gelding, who had topweight of 60.5kg, wasn’t entitled to win.
“I got a good kick out of that,” Callow said.
“At the 600 (metres) I was saying to myself `we’re in a bit of trouble here’, but he is as tough as boots.”
