The first lady of Australian racing added another keepsake to a growing collection on Sunday, when powerhouse Australian trainer Gai Waterhouse's Falcon Island dominated the field at the Coonamble Cup feature race.
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The gelding from Waterhouse and Adrian Bott's stable finished well ahead of the competition on Sunday.
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The 2013 Melbourne cup winning trainer has made a few forays into country racing in recent years, taking home the Bathurst Cup, as well as more recently the Newcastle and Port Macquarie Cups, and Falcon Island left no room for doubt in the final call, settling two lengths ahead of the west's best under the guidance of jockey Rory Hutchings and powering down the final straight to secure the win.
It was local trainer Allan Gibson and jockey Ken Dunbar who led most of the race, with Cowboys Karma making a good starting effort, before coming into the final turn and being first matched, then overcome by the visitor's speed.
Talking to Sky's Thoroughbred Central after the race, Hutchings made it clear that were no doubts about the result in the lead-up either, saying Falcon Island was '100%' the best horse on paper.
"The only concern coming here today was having only a few days on the back, he only raced on Monday and there was a six hour flight trip down, but knowing Gai's it's half the effort and he showed he was the best horse in the race," Hutchings said.
While the slow start for a Waterhouse horse was uncharacteristic, Hutchings said he was mindful of the amount of speed contained within the other barriers, looking to avoid a battle with Gibson's Cowboys Karma or Tony Newing's Rock Sonic.
"I let a few go, I always had that in the back of my mind, Ken Dunbar's horse it doesn't know anything else and Jake Pracey-Holmes he was always going to make her work, so I was happy to just peel off their backs and get past them at the top of the straight."
While not the most lucrative trophy Waterhouse's stable has claimed, the $35, 250 dollar first place finish in the cup made travelling the 'long way out' to Coonamble more than worth the trip.
"I thought the next town was going to be Perth if I kept going, but it was all made worthwhile," Hutchings said.
Waterhouse, who wasn't there in person to witness the win, added her congratulations afterwards on social media, tweeting 'From the Newcastle Cup to the Port Macquarie Cup & onto the Coonamble Cup! It's been a successful few months for us in these rich country Cups & we couldn't be more proud of the lovely Falcon Island today at Coonamble!'