First Listed win for Lionel Cohen - Aeronautical winner of The Rosebud will step up in competition taking on a star-studded field in the Golden Rose next month. Picture: Simon Bullard.
Aeronautical gave trainer Lionel Cohen his first stakes winner and proved he was a genuine rival to star three-year-olds Helmet and Smart Missile in the Group 1 $1 million Golden Rose after a stunning win at Randwick on Sunday.
In an impressive demonstration of acceleration and class, Aeronautical came from last on the turn to sprint past his rivals and win the Listed $100,000 The Rosebud (1200m) in a canter.
Aeronautical’s rider, star young jockey Nathan Berry, who scored his first feature-race winner since coming out of his apprenticeship in April, gave Cohen a knowing wink on dismounting.
“He travels that easily underneath you and when I popped the question to him, he just let rip,” Berry told Cohen.
“I don’t think I’ve ridden a horse with a burst of acceleration like this horse has. He’s a real serious racehorse.”
Cohen had the look of a man content after the race – even if the ease and dominance of Aeronautical’s win surprised him.
“I was a little worried he might have been underdone for the race,” Cohen said.
“He had a month between runs and he was taking on a better class of horse today.
“To be honest, I didn’t really think about this race being black type, I just wanted to see if he could repeat his last-start performance when he won here last month.”
Aeronautical did that and more – providing Cohen with his first stakes success as a trainer.
Cohen, 50, is a third generation South African racehorse breeder, perhaps best known as the owner of former champion Sun Classique.
He had always harboured an ambition to train racehorses but after being told he would need to serve a five-year apprenticeship in his homeland before being granted a trainer’s licence, he made an application to train in Sydney.
Cohen was granted a licence last year and in his first season prepared two provincial winners (Liquid Force and State General) before Aeronautical won at Randwick last month.
He only has a team of about 10 horses in work and races them all himself as he is still on the lookout for owners. His success with Aeronautical should have his phone ringing hot from potential clients in coming weeks.
Purchased by Cohen for $100,000 as a yearling, having now won two of his only four starts, Aeronautical is on target for the Golden Rose (1400m) at Rosehill on September 10.
“I probably want him to have another run before the Golden Rose but I’ll have to work out where,” he said.
Bookies reacted to Aeronautical’s outstanding win by slashing the gelding’s odds for the Golden Rose.
extract from www.dailytelegraph.com.au
