Phillip Stokes' decision to send Athanatos north for a lucrative provincial feature has reaped the ultimate dividend
A quick glance through the form of Athanatos was all it took for Kerrin Mcevoy to know he was going to be riding a genuine chance in the $500,000 The Coast and his confidence was borne out when the interstate-trained radar proved too strong.
McEvoy had never been aboard the four-year-old, but on seeing he was beaten less than two lengths when fourth to Transatlantic in the Toorak Handicap (1600m) last spring, the star jockey figured Athanatos only needed to replicate that effort to be in the finish.
“I was pretty confident when I got the booking and looked at his runs,” McEvoy said.
“I gave ‘Stokesy’ (trainer Phillip Stokes) a call yesterday and he backed it up. He said, ‘he’s in good form’.
“I got confidence out of the fact the last time he went to the mile was in the Toorak, and as we know it’s a competitive handicap, a Group One, and he wasn’t beaten far.”
From a midfield draw on Saturday, McEvoy positioned Athanatos ($11) on the heels of the leaders and the gelding sprinted quickly in the straight to quickly get the better of leader Sarrismo ($2.90 fav) and defeat him by a length.
Grand Omaha ($51) finished third, another half-neck away.
Speaking from Morphettville where he was on hand for the Goodwood meeting, Stokes said connections had identified Saturday’s The Coast (1600m) at Gosford as a good litmus test towards their ultimate goal, the Five Diamonds (1800m) in Sydney later this year.
“Next prep we’re going to aim up for that,” Stokes told Racing And Sports.
“This was a big prizemoney race, and the owners will be wrapped.
“I’m getting a bit of a handle on Sydney now. It’s something we want to explore more and have more of a presence up there, so it’s important to identify horses to send up.
“He might be a horse we now have to look at Brisbane with.”
