A decision to geld Lankan Rupee continued to pay off with a Group Three Kevin Heffernan Stakes win at Caulfield.
The four-year-old saluted at the generous odds of $14 despite a VRC Oaks day win at Flemington during the Melbourne Cup carnival.
Lankan Rupee - Photo Sarah Ebbett
Market mover She Can Skate set a fast pace in the 1200m race but Lankan Rupee always had in her sights and cruised away to beat Hot Snitzel by 2 1/4 lengths with Famous Seamus taking third.
Price said the race was a challenge to see if Lankan Rupee could handle the distance and with that query answered, he will join the queue of Victorian horses heading to Sydney for their share of the huge money on offer during the autumn.
“Now that he is gelded I think he’s a bit more settled,” said Price.
“We’ll look at the autumn carnival and all those big dollars on offer.”
Jockey Craig Newitt said getting Lankan Rupee to relax had been the biggest worry but that was not a problem on Saturday.
“Unfortunately he had to lose his marbles but that will be the key to him winning,” said Newitt.
