Anton Marcus steers Beloved Country through to win the Devon Air Stakes
Trainer Charles Laird and jockey Anton Marcus struck early on Rising Sun Gold Challenge day when Markus and Ingrid Jooste’s Trippi filly Beloved Country finished with a sustained burst to win the R135 000 Listed Devon Air Stakes run over 1450m at Clairwood on Saturday.
The 2014 Sentinel Stakes winner was outpaced when running unplaced behind Rosier in the 1200m Gr2 The Debutante at the end of April, but ridden with restraint on Saturday by Anton Marcus she showed a touch of class and proved Laird spot on with his early assessment of her.
Richard Fourie brought Justin Snaith’s unbeaten Eros’s Girl across from her wide draw and she and the grey Shahrasal paced it out in front for the first 400m.
The field angled to the outside as they turned for home and after Eros’s Girl had cried enough, Just Lucky moved up full of running but Marcus had her in his sights and Beloved Country ran on very smartly with the favourite Pine Princess also running on strongly down the inside to shade the improved again Just Lucky.
Beloved Country registered a time of 87,08 secs and won a little more convincingly than the short head would suggest. She started at 8 to 1 in the face of hype for a good few of her opposition.
Beloved Country was bred by Klawervlei Stud and is a daughter of Trippi out of the very fast Australian bred, Uber Rock, who won three races here.
She was sold for R600 000 on the Cape Premier Yearling Book 1.
She is now a winner of 3 of her 4 starts and took her earnings to R208 125.
All of the top three look to be worth following.
