News

Fawkner Group 1 bound after just missing track record

3rd Nov 2012

Team Williams galloper Fawkner heads towards next week’s $1million Group 1 VRC Emirates Stakes in devastating form after getting within a whisker of Flemington’s twenty-year-old 1400m track record when winning the Group 3 VRC tab.com.au Stakes today.

Fawkner ($70,000 2009 Premier, 5g Reset-Dane Belltar) settled towards the back of today’s high class field before coming with a sustained run down the centre of the straight to stop the clock at 1:20.90, just shy of Lovey’s record of 1:20.60 which was set on 12 December 1992.

"It was an absolutely great ride and obviously the front two were running along and he had the other fancied horse in the race, the Darley horse in his sights the whole time and made sure he got onto his back to make his run,” Nick Williams said.

“We'll see how he pulls up but we might look at running him in the Group 1 [Emirates Stakes] on Saturday or there's a nice race for him at Sandown or we may even go to Perth for the Railway Stakes.”

The son of Team William’s former triple Group 1 winner Reset, Fawkner (pictured as yearling) was purchased for $70,000 from the draft of Mill Park at the 2009 Inglis Melbourne Premier Yearling Sale.

The five-year-old has accumulated over $500,000 for his connections thanks to eight wins and three placings from just 14 career starts.

Jockey Nick Hall is also confident of aiming higher at Group 1 level with the progressive galloper following today’s victory.

"He has been kept at 1400m this time in and it has suited him and he's had the perfect preparation heading into the Emirates Stakes,” Hall said.

The 1600m $1milion Group 1 VRC Emirates Stakes is always a hotly contested handicap, with this year’s renewal next Saturday likely to draw a top quality field yet again.