Big handicap success at Haydock has been on the cards.
In the Betfair Exchange Old Borough Cup at Haydock, Epic Poet achieved the major race triumph he had predicted throughout the season.
After being purchased for 48,000 guineas from Freddie and Martyn Meade's yard in the fall of last year, the five-year-old has performed admirably in all four of his starts for David O'Meara. Notably, he finished second in the Duke of Edinburgh Stakes at Royal Ascot, followed by fifth place in the John Smith's Cup and fourth place in the Ebor York.
The son of Lope De Vega was favored by 11-2 to win the majority of the GBP 100,000 on Merseyside. He finished the one-mile, six-furlong race admirably, defeating that tenacious opponent by a neck after running darkly alongside Waxing Gibbous in the last two furlongs.
Epic Poet – GBP 100,000 Old Borough Cup hero 🏆
Winning NAP for @StevoGG @omeararacing | @haydockraces pic.twitter.com/yiaCdxr4JR
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) September 7, 2024
O'Meara declared: "I'm thrilled to have him. Though he hasn't won, he has had an excellent season.
"It's not before time for him to win a big race; he ran a cracker at Royal Ascot and I believe he was the only horse with a high draw to get in the frame in the Ebor." As always, Danny provided an amazing ride, and it was wonderful to see his face in public.
"I don't know where we're going to go from here, but I wouldn't be against testing him in a Pattern race because I believe he's competent enough.
"Long-term, I wouldn't mind looking at the Red Sea Turf Handicap in Saudi Arabia, which is worth a lot of money."
In the Betfair Plays Different Handicap, Master Builder finished first after starting last.
Although David Menuisier's grey horse lagged behind the other horses by a few lengths during the back straight, it continued to move well after the home turn and intelligently picked up speed under William Buick's astute riding to win by two and a quarter lengths as the 3-1 favorite.
"I'm overjoyed. We were pretty sure that he would progress again with a little more groundwork after he performed something extremely wonderful in the Melrose (at York, finishing third)," said Menuisier.
Although it has just been two weeks since his race, William certainly made it look easy considering how little we did between York and here!
Master Builder thoroughly impressive in the second race @haydockraces for @DavidMenuisier pic.twitter.com/jdqMOGyp2I
— Ashley Iveson (@AshIveson) September 7, 2024
"The horse turns off rapidly and with great ease. I wasn't too concerned when he fell behind because they went by quickly in the beginning.
"I felt we would be unlucky not to win from that point onwards because turning in, you could see that he was pulling up the bridle and was traveling better than anything else.
"At the time, I don't have any plans. We must first enjoy this one before making arrangements."
The Betfair Be Friendly Handicap was won by Mick Appleby and Oisin Murphy together, and Shagraan, the 9-4 favorite, came charging back to defeat Jer Batt by a half-length.
"That went well; he was drawn on the incorrect side, but fortunately we knew that Night On Earth would move quickly and bring us in, which he did. Everything went smoothly, "said Appleby.
"The ground was on the softer side for him, but he's done the job well and I think he's still improving."
The trainer continued, thinking ahead: "Oisin wants to go somewhere in the sun! We've given it some thought, and Bahrain—five furlongs away—would be ideal for him, but there won't be many races available.
"We'll take a look and decide our course of action. Before we lock him up, I'm sure he'll have additional opportunities this year that suit him."
