It is either a feast or a famine for the connections of Bermadez who landed a rich restricted race at Flemington during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
The Mike Moroney-trained galloper took out the $500,000 Melbourne Cup Carnival Country Final (1600m) on Thursday, a race for horses that won their way to Flemington via heats in the country area.
Bermadez is now the winner of five of his seven starts, but when the Mike Moroney-trained galloper has a “miss” he runs out of the placings.
Providing Damien Oliver his fourth winner of this year’s carnival, Bermadez ($5) registered victory by a nose over Typhoon Harmony ($18) with Brazen Song ($51) a further short-neck away third.
Bermadez won his way to Flemington with an impressive 3-¾ length win at Sale in a benchmark 70 race on October 24.
“He’s always looked a smart horse, but he’s taken a long time,” Moroney said.
“He’s actually named after a horse that ran third in a Brisbane Cup for my vet Jim Marks who is in ill health at the moment.
“Paul and I spent a lot of time with him, he taught us about buying horses, so it’s great for him.
“When he won his maiden, I spoke to Ollie and he thought he was a group horse that day, but he’s had a lot of things go wrong with him and we gave him eight months in the paddock to get over it.
“The owners have been really patient and he’s starting to deliver now and by the autumn we might travel with him.
“Once he gets a bit further too, it might suit him.”
Oliver said connections had been rewarded with their patience while also noting not to be in a hurry and not to push the son of Tavistock to a higher grade, too soon.
“He needs a bigger track and although he looks like he could run 2000 metres I wouldn’t be in a hurry to get him there yet,” Oliver said.
“I think around the mile is a good trip for him at the moment.”