Find out what the jockeys made of their mounts after the Group 1 $4m Longines Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) at Royal Randwick.
Nash Rawiller (Think It Over): “What a horse. So disappointing just with the autumn the way it’s panned out with all the wet tracks. You know those good ones can find a way to win can’t they? I trotted down the outside fence going to the barriers on one of them earlier in the day and thought ‘I’ll keep this up my sleeve for later’.
“Even coming down the side there I was sitting off the fence. We just tried to keep him in clear ground. I thought he was going to run a good second, but when he hit that fresh patch of grass, away he went.
“I still knew I was in the race because I hadn’t really had to feel for him. I still had him on the bridle, but I knew he was going to give. He’s just that sort of horse. Even that time when it was wetter he’s probably got beaten two lengths behind the great mare (Chipping Norton behind Verry Elleegant).
“The reason why he was odds like that is the conditions and it’s just a funny thing how it worked. When I straightened I thought ‘it’s worth a go’ to get to the outside. I just felt it’s where the ambulances drive and all the tractors run up the outside fence. For my bloke it was like going from a heavy 9 to slow 6 which he can handle. When he can handle the track he does that, he’s a very good horse.”
Jamie Kah (Zaaki): “Massive effort. I reckon if the winner was closer to him he would have been in for the dogfight but he couldn’t really see him. Great effort again.”
William Pike (Mount Popa): “Really good. Nice cheeky run. He went fantastic.”
Mark Zahra (I’m Thunderstruck): “Didn’t disgrace himself. Looked like being a chance on the turn. 2000m and a Heavy 10 probably got the better of him late.”
Chad Schofield (Dalasan): “Brave run. Travelled well in the box seat. When Zaaki quickened it really dropped me.”
James McDonald (Verry Elleegant): “She tried really hard.”
Josh Parr (Duais): “Just getting back a long way in such testing ground it became impossible to reel them in.”
Hugh Bowman (Montefilia): “Too good Nash.”
Tommy Berry (Anamoe): “We had a nice run in transit. Really didn’t handle the track from the 600 to the 400 and lost a lot of confidence at that point.”
