It took the Melbourne Cup favourite to halt Right You Are’s winning streak earlier this month and on Saturday the gelding returned to the winner’s list with a dramatic win in the $300,000 Listed Mornington Cup.
The Ciaron Maher and David Eustace-trained galloper engaged in a stirring battle with proven weight-for-age performer Hezashocka over the concluding stages of the 2400-metre event and was involved in a photo finish that took the judge several minutes to come to a conclusion.
Right You Are got his head down at the right time to win by a nose despite Hezashocka laying out over the concluding stages, which saved the race being taken into the stewards’ room according to winning jockey Ben Allen.
“The second horse did come out on us quite a bit and we did bump, it probably stopped us from winning by a bit more,” Allen said.
Right Your Are’s win, which secured a ballot exemption from the 2023 Caulfield Cup, continued the day’s feature-race theme of rejuvenated galloper’s bouncing back after Jigsaw rebounded from his only defeat of the season in the William Reid Stakes to win the Listed Hareeba Stakes.
Right You Are won five in a row before missing the Australian Cup due to a minor leg issue before beating home all bar White Marlin in the Group 3 Easter Cup (2400m) at Sandown on April 8.
“He was a rehab horse, he had a soft tissue injury, so he’s taken a lot of nursing over a long time,” Maher and Eustace’s assistant trainer Jack Turnbull said.
“You hear it a lot, but the team has managed him really well. It’s been a slow procedure, but he’s been ultra consistent. You look at his form and how he’s progressed, it’s just wonderful.
“I think he’s been up since October, so he’s a marvel. He loves racing, he loves being in the stable and he’s well-loved by the staff and he’s a happy horse.
“Hopefully he can remain sound. I would imagine he goes for a well-earned break and we can aim for the spring.”
Right You Are, a six-year-old son of So Think who had more than a year off before having his first start for Maher and Eustace, has now won 10 of 22 starts and a tick over $900,000 in stakes.