If his X-rays are to be believed, Spill The Beans should not be racing let alone beating a quality field in a Group Three race.
Rejected twice by Hong Kong, Spill The Beans stayed with his breeder John Messara who sent him to Rosehill trainer Gerald Ryan.
Spill The Beans
On Saturday, the three-year-old beat a field headed by dual Group One winner Pride Of Dubai to win the Eskimo Prince Stakes (1200m) at Randwick.
“He failed the X-rays for Hong Kong at the yearling sale and again when he got up and racing,” Ryan said.
“When he came to me he had a scar on a front joint from where he’d hurt himself but he’s never gone shin sore or had any issues.
“I’ve always thought he could gallop and I was pretty confident coming here today.”
Punters echoed that confidence with Spill The Beans backed from $9 to $4.80 behind $4.40 equal favourites Counterattack and Wolf Cry.
Tim Clark had Spill The Beans up sharing the lead with Voilier and he went on with the job to beat Le Romain ($18) by 1-3/4 lengths with another length to Counterattack.
Pride Of Dubai eased from $5 to $6.50 and after travelling just behind the leaders found nothing in the straight and beat just one other runner home.
His jockey Hugh Bowman had no explanation.
“I was most disappointed with him,” he said.
“I don’t know what happened to be honest.
“He wasn’t moving as well as he can under pressure but in saying that he was beaten before he was placed under pressure.
“He has me scratching my head. He didn’t even get me to the 300 metre mark.”
In contrast, Ryan was beaming.
“I thought he could win,” he said.
“He has just been so much better this preparation.
“I trialled him in blinkers which I don’t usually do but they have done the trick.
“And I thought he would have a fitness edge on some of the others because he’s at the top of his game.”
While Peter and Paul Snowden will go back to the drawing board with Pride Of Dubai, Ryan will head to even bigger races with Spill The Beans.
“He’s entered for the TJ Smith but whether he gets to a race like that remains to be seen,” Ryan said.
“But there are some good races coming up for him.”
