Blowout for punters as Wangaratta quinella pays $998

Rhys Archard’s horse, Charcoal Annie, surprised everyone with a remarkable win at Wangaratta on Tuesday, winning second-up after an 18-month break as an outsider at $101 odds.

In the 1590-meter race, Charcoal Annie faced little support in betting, with stablemate Bangerang Redback being the more favoured at $8. Wearing the race club’s all-white colours, jockey Paul Gatt led the mare to the front, maintaining control of the pace. While other horses appeared poised to overtake, Charcoal Annie held her ground and secured a lead of one and a half lengths with 100 meters to go.

The only horse making a significant ground late was another outsider, Jody Thompson’s Batahi, at odds of $91 with betting sites.

The race turned out to be a blowout for punters, with a quinella paying $998 and the exacta at a massive $1,601.70.

The last two races at Wangaratta experienced delays due to lightning strikes in the area.