After a massive downpour at Flemington Racecourse on Crown Oaks Day the downgraded Heavy (9) track suited the Chris Waller-trained Hursely to a tee, the Kiwi-bred colt flying home to win the TV Stakes 2015 at just his fifth start.
A capacity field of 16 lined-up in this year’s $150,000 Listed TCL Curved TV Stakes (1800m), won last Melbourne Cup Carnival by Petrology who went on to win the Group 2 Sandown Guineas (1600m).
Waller’s son of Makfi, fresh off a solid third in a Benchmark 66 over 1580m on a Good (4) Canterbury track last weekend, handled the quick back-up and the rise in class to pen his maiden black-type win.
After starting once for a failed run as a two-year-old in the winter at Mornington over an unsuitably short 1000m race, Hursely was sent out to furnish and has come back a bigger and better galloper with plenty of staying potential.
Enjoying his second Ladies Day win after the success aboard Berisha in the second, jockey Craig Williams gave the eventual TV Stakes winner a stalking ride off the pace set by the likes of Sound The Trumpet and Matt Laurie’s widely-drawn Sea Of Tranquility who came round the outside making up ground as they approached the home turn.
Sea Of Tranquility led wide into the straight, while Williams and Hursley ($13) made up ground quickly closing fast down the outside.
He took over and strode to the lead 100m to go ploughing through the mud track to draw clear and beat home Mornington-trained Dash For Cash gelding Sea Of Tranquility ($21) by two lengths.
In third was Michael Moroney’s local gelding War Legend ($15) ridden by Craig Newitt to round out an all double-figure trifecta in the fifth.
“We come here with big confidence today,” winning hoop Williams said after the win.
“Chris Waller was full of confidence.
“The breed loves soft ground and loves getting out to a trip.”
Hursley has now won two of his five career starts, Waller’s stable representative Justine Hales confident he’ll only continue to improve the more distance he gets over throughout his career.
“Very impressive,” she said of the horse today.
“He’s a fit horse that needed the extra distance today.
“He’s come on well. He’s a lovely horse.
“We’ll keep stepping him up in distance and he looks like he’ll get further and further.
“Chris will have something planned for him.”
Possible autumn targets for the up-and-coming stayer include Sydney’s $500,000 Group 1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m) and the $1.5 million Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m) back at Flemington in March.
To get behind the TV Stakes winner Hursely next race at the right price make sure you have an open online with Ladbrokes.com.au who are offering Best Tote or SP + 20% across the Flemington card for Oaks Day and Saturday’s Emirates Stakes Day program.
2015 TV Stakes Results & Finishing Order
Flemington Race 5 – 05/11/2015
| Place | # | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Br. | Wgt. | SP |
| 1 | 6 | HURSLEY (NZ) | Chris Waller | Craig Williams | – | 8 | 56kg | $12 |
| 2 | 3 | SEA OF TRANQUILITY | Matt Laurie | Damien Oliver | 1.5L | 15 | 56kg | $21 |
| 3 | 4 | WAR LEGEND (NZ) | Michael Moroney | Craig Newitt | 2.5L | 12 | 56kg | $15 |
| 4 | 12 | BENGAL CAT | John Sadler | Glen Boss | 4.5L | 14 | 54kg | $5.50F |
| 5 | 2 | LOYALTY MAN | Michael Moroney | Jake Noonan | 4.7L | 10 | 56kg | $9 |
| 6 | 11 | FREEDOMS | Mick Price | Hugh Bowman | 12.7L | 6 | 56kg | $41 |
| 7 | 9 | DUKE OF BONEO (NZ) | Darren Weir | Brad Rawiller | 13.45L | 1 | 56kg | $31 |
| 8 | 1 | RAGNAAR (NZ) | Lee & Anthony Freedman | Blake Shinn | 19.45L | 13 | 56kg | $6 |
| 9 | 14 | TAVI BAY (NZ) | Henry Dwyer | James McDonald | 19.65L | 4 | 54kg (cd 54.5kg) | $10 |
| 10 | 7 | BULLISH STOCK (NZ) | David Hayes & Tom Dabernig | Kerrin McEvoy | 20.9L | 3 | 56kg | $12 |
| 11 | 5 | KRYPTONIAN | David Hayes & Tom Dabernig | Dwayne Dunn | 25.4L | 7 | 56kg | $6.50 |
| 12 | 16 | HOLY LULA (NZ) | Jim Conlan | Patrick Moloney (a) | 29.9L | 11 | 54kg | $81 |
| 13 | 15 | MA RAISON (NZ) | Nigel Blackiston | Luke Currie | 35.9L | 5 | 54kg | $41 |
| 14 | 10 | SOUND THE TRUMPET (NZ) | Robbie Laing | Chris Parnham | 36.1L | 9 | 56kg | $101 |
| 15 | 8 | BAHEEJ | David Hayes & Tom Dabernig | Michael Walker | 37.1L | 2 | 56kg | $21 |
| – | 17e | ECLAIR SHADOW (NZ) | Robbie Laing | – | – | 0 | – | – |
| – | 13 | ASHLEE MARIE | Richard Laming | Steven King | – | 0 | – | – |
