Despite his great recent form, Bulletproof Boy wasn’t expected to trouble big names like Kingman, Hi Managirlff and Petracca.
Hello Managirlff found the early lead when Petracca settled behind the leader and Catch A Wave ended up on the death chair outside.
Meanwhile, Luke McCarthy was able to lead Kingman away from the fence early on into a one-out, one-back path with Bulletproof Boy right behind.
BULLETPROOF BOY JAN 10 REPEAT
Will Rixon on Hi Managirlff let off the brakes on the final lap and as he ran his third quarter in 26.5 seconds it looked like his rivals, including Kingman, were struggling in the final corner. But he began to tire and Petracca gave a strong challenge. Meanwhile, Bulletproof Boy’s James Herbertson opted to move back in and save ground. Petracca took the lead but was unable to hold on to a determined Bulletproof Boy as Kingman took third a further two meters away.
Bulletproof Boy has now won 51 races for just over $850,000 for trainer Scott Ewen and his co-owners.
Herbertson praised Bulletproof Boy.
He’s just great, isn’t he? He’s 11 years old and I keep saying he’s raising the bar. How far he can increase it over the next six months, we’ll have to wait and see.
I didn’t do what I wanted to do. What I did there. I was hoping Kate would fall on the fence, when Kate wasn’t looking to go there I was waiting and waiting for the opportunity to present itself, we just had to take it from then on. We ended up there anyway and it was a good place to be.
I was very happy with the way he handled the whole journey. We reached the 300 meters and the good horses were ticking. And Bullet was still driving around there. I was just happy to be there. It felt very easy for him, even though it probably shouldn’t have been. I’m over the moon for the horse.
Trainer Scott Ewen added
I can’t believe it. Between him and James, they’re both freaks. I was a little concerned that he hadn’t run in three weeks. I’ll give him a few runs this week. He was sensational on Thursday and James did a great job. Maybe I should go to Shepparton. As long as he runs good races, I think if he wins a cup or two, we’ll be lucky and he’ll have won one already. So it’s beautiful.
The focus of the Country Cups now shifts to Shepparton next Saturday evening where the Cup will see the showdown between Leap To Fame, Swayzee and Kingman. While he was beaten into third place at Melton, Kingman will be improved by the hit-out and expects a sharper Kingman to emerge at Shepparton. And who knows, Bulletproof Boy may join the illustrious field.
For full race results, click here.
Through Tony Milanesefor Harnesslink
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