Aaron Bullock has finally won a Tamworth Cup (1400m) after guiding the Lyle Chandler-trained Banju ($9) to victory in the $200,000 event on Friday.
It was another Bullock masterclass, as he sat fourth on the six-year-old before opting for the inside running and pulling away for a 1.11 lengths win from the Stephen Jones-trained High Court (Grant Buckley, $16), while in third and 1.55 lengths back was the Cameron Crockett-trained Commando Hunt (Reece Jones, $15).
“I just love winning Country Cups, and I never thought I’d win the Tamworth Cup,” Bullock said after the victory.
“I’ve got to thank Lyle and the owners; they gave me a spin around on him a week ago in a trial, and I said to Lyle, ‘Jeez, he gave me a good feeling, but he’s not the horse I see race day’, and he said to me, ‘don’t worry Aaron, with the blinkers on, he’s a different horse’, and full credit to Lyle, he knows his horses well, and he does a great job.”
Bullock, who rode four winners on the Tamworth program, had nothing but positives for the Scone galloper after his decisive win.
“I had a lovely run in behind them, and jeez, when I gave him a squeeze and put the foot down, he really let rip,” Bullock said.
“He’s in for a good prep again, he had a really good prep last time, and I reckon he can do the same this prep.”
Chandler has enjoyed a storied run with Banju, which has won 8 times in 25 starts, earning connections almost $600,000 in prize money, and the Scone trainer was quick to heap praise on Bullock.
“He’s a real trier, and thanks very much to Aaron; I think he’s the king of the castle around here, and he is such a great rider, as proven today, and it was just nice to see Banju do it again,” Chandler said.
“He was just over-doing it as well, just a tad, and I was a bit worried it was going to be a sit and sprint, and going to the inside, I thought it might be worse ground, but Aaron knows what he is doing, and the horse is honest, and it was a good day.
Chandler will now set the Tamworth Cup winner for next month’s $200,000 Scone Cup, with local connections dreaming of a hometown win.
“He’ll definitely go to the Scone Cup,” Chandler said,
“That’s been the target; he was bred and raised in Scone and foaled over at Chatsworth Park in Scone, and that’s where he was raised, and half the ownership is in Scone, and obviously we train in Scone, so we’d like to win our home cup.”
Regarding other significant targets, Chandler wants to get through his next race, but the $2 million Big Dance will be in the back of his mind, with both Banju and runner-up High Court now eligible for the rich Country Cup finale.
“He is tremendously sound, and as I said, he was really well raised at Chatsworth Park, and we always like to give our horses a bit of time, and we seem to get them up consistently, and that is what he is,” Chandler said.
It was another massive day of Country Cup racing at Tamworth, and for results, click here.
