The Silver Slipper Stakes was supposed to be a race to help the Golden Slipper outlook become clearer but James Cummings and Adam Hyeronimus were not letting the opportunity pass to throw Beiwacht into the picture with a commanding victory at Rosehill.
With race favourite Wodeton enduring a character building run three-wide from barrier nine for much of the 1100-metre trip of the Group 2 event, the $2.20 favourite stuck on gamely under Kerrin McEvoy for third placing by a short-neck to West Of Swindon ($9.50) in second.
That, and a below expectations performance from second favourite Bel Merci ($3.20) finishing second last, it was for the son of three-time Group 1 winner Bivouac to raise his Golden Slipper credentials with a 2¾-length win one month out from the $5 million feature for two-year-olds back at Rosehill on March 22.
Described as a ‘raw colt’ by Hyeronmus, Beiwacht ($17) finished was runner-up last start to the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained Bellazaine at Randwick on February 8.
“He was out of the frame on debut but we chipped away, stuck to the plan, we didn’t panic and it’s a great testament to our teams that we’ve been able to continue to get this horse to go the right way because he’s got a lot of natural pace,” Cummings said,
“He’s got speed to burn and we just needed to calm him down, get him to do it right and that’s what you get with a colt by Bivouac who’s a fast horse out of a Street Cry mare who’s already thrown a group winner.
“This is a class animal and a month out from the Golden Slipper, that’s a huge result.”
“I thought he ran fantastic,” Kerrin McEvoy said of Wodeton’s run.
“The plan was to be a little bit quiet to get some cover but that didn’t eventuate. He got a little bit competitive, having to be a bit closer on the corner having done it the hard way.
“Everything points to him being 100% ready to go in a few weeks’ time.”
Zac Lloyd commented that Bel Merci was “not the same horse today”,
Wodeton retains favouritism at $3.50 for the Golden Slipper across markets with the Michael Freedman-trained Apocalytpic second favourite at $11.
After this victory, Beiwacht has firmed from $34 into $15 with online betting sites to win the 2025 Golden Slipper.
