It’s no surprise that she started a prohibitively expensive long odds favorite.
From the mobile control room, Rockinwithattitude showed early speed to take the lead. Jason Lee on Keayang Zahara allowed the mare to settle down before letting her move into the lead around the 1600m stage.
From then on, Keayang Zahara simply rode on, although Arcee Phoenix, who was caught outside the leader, would not surrender without a fight. Im Bobby, last week’s Shepparton Cup winner, was back on track with three.
Arcee Phoenix continued to battle away but Lee simply let Keayang Zahara run away in the final corner and she looked great in the home straight, beating Rockinwithattitude by 11 metres, with Arcee Phoenix taking a much improved third place.
Once again, Keayang Zahara broke another track record with her kilometer speed of 1.56.8, including a neat last quarter of 26.9 seconds.
Jason Lee commented after the race.
We were humming. And Arcee Phoenix looked like a different horse tonight. He was traveling in flight and looked strong. And it looked like he was here to race. We probably caught our breath early. I like to roll along. She relaxed in the front when we got to the other side.
When asked about the potential $500,000 bonus that Keayang Zahara is on track to rake in, Lee admitted
You watch these races as a kid growing up. Honestly, you just have to get through the night and see that she’s doing well, but it’s a big carrot, but it’s already in the back of our minds.
It’s in the back of our minds to try to achieve this.
It’s not an easy task and we’re just taking it one race at a time. We’ve had a great 12 to 18 months. These are the horses you dream about and honestly you don’t think you’re going to get them with such a good team and it could all be gone tomorrow.
Keayang Zahara is quickly building a huge base in harness racing, so wherever she goes, there will be plenty of interest and support in the hope that this great mare can continue her winning run.
By Tony Milanese for Harnesslink
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