Tony McEvoy says there’s improvement to come from Sunlight after the filly scored a hard-fought victory in the Quezette Stakes at Caulfield.
The winner of the Magic Millions Classic on the Gold Coast in January and later finishing third in the Golden Slipper, Sunlight was one of the better credentialled two-year-olds of last season.
But a comfortable first-up defeat at the hands of Nature Strip at Morphettville last month had some doubting whether the filly would return to her two-year-old form.
But McEvoy never lost faith saying he’d left plenty in the tank for a spring campaign with the Group One Coolmore Stud Stakes at Flemington in November her goal.
“We went in with a light prep into that first-up run,” McEvoy said.
“It fitted where I wanted to go with her and knowing her as well as I do she takes a bit of work to get her fit.
“She blew out in Adelaide and was beaten by a pretty handy horse but today she was in for a fight and was the Sunlight of old.”
Under Luke Currie on Saturday, Sunlight ($4.20) held off Humma Humma ($8) to score by a half-head with Thrillster ($17) three-quarters-of-a-length away third.
With her record as a two-year-old Sunlight had to concede weight to her rivals which made the victory even sweeter for McEvoy.
“Three-deep, facing that wind, doing it all carrying the penalty, she was fantastic,” he said.
McEvoy has the Danehill Stakes at Flemington on September 15 as Sunlight’s next likely engagement before the Coolmore Stud Stakes.
