Swift Witness has taken out the Silver Shadow Stakes but her victory has been overshadowed by a dramatic fall in the straight in which Xtremetime suffered a fatal injury.
The fillies’ feature was a rough-house affair from the outset with horses jostling for positions in a moderately run race.
It didn’t get any better in the straight as the field fanned and the backmarkers tried to probe for gaps before Xtremetime appeared to clip heels and fall with jockey Brenton Avdulla crashing to the turf.
There were immediate concerns for Avdulla’s welfare as he lay motionless on the track before regaining consciousness.
Avdulla was taken to Prince Of Wales Hospital for further assessment but on-course medics did not believe he had suffered any serious injuries.
Xtremetime suffered a fatal leg injury in the incident and was humanely euthanased.
Winning trainer Gai Waterhouse said the stable had been teaching Swift Witness ($7.50) to relax in her races and their work paid dividends on Saturday.
The Tulloch Lodge filly raced handy throughout and kept going once she hit the front to defeat Latino Blend ($21) with Four Moves Ahead ($2.50 fav) a close-up third.
Waterhouse believes Swift Witness is a sprinter, although she hasn’t ruled out extending her to a mile in the Group 1 Flight Stakes.
“I don’t think she will get out over too far because she is so brilliant,” Waterhouse said.
“We will go to the Furious Stakes next because that is still at 1200 metres. Then we will think about the Tea Rose Stakes and whether we go to the mile for the Flight Stakes.
“But she is a lovely type of tenacious filly that we do so well with, the ones I love to have in our stable.
“She is back with a vengeance and will give them something to chase when they meet again.”
