Exotic Bushranger steals a win

A biblical Red Seas scenario paved the way for Exotic Bushranger (Pet Rock) to score an unlikely harness racing win in the Sulky.APP Metropolitan Pace (1st Heat) at Melton. 

The Michael Stanley trained and driven pacer settled four back along the pegs from its inside second row draw and was shuffled back to last as the field rounded the home turn. 

Both the leader Elusive and behind leader Swizzlestick wandered away from the pegs in the home straight allowing Exotic Bushranger ($21) to access the sprint lane and the four-year-old charged through along the pegs to get up and score by two metres from the $151 rank outsider High Flux. 

Exotic Bushranger captures his fourth win in the first heat of the Sulky. App Metropolitan Pace for trainer-driver Michael Stanley at Melton. pic.twitter.com/rl7A9ubiEj

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Stanley said the winner’s task was made tougher shortly after the start  

“He’s still got a lot to learn as he was a little bit awkward away and just wanted to get off the track at the start and we lost a spot,” Stanley said. 

Stanley is suitably impressed by the winner. 

“He’s a really progressive horse and I think he’s going to have a really good future,” he said. 

Stanley concedes the racing gods smiled upon him in the home straight. 

“Sometimes you need a bit of luck and both the leader and the one on his back went wide instead of inside,  so we got the run through,” he said.  

“But you need the horse to take the luck and we did tonight.” 

Stanley is optimistic about the future of his stable. 

“We’ve moved on a lot of older horses to Perth and we’ve got a really good bunch of up and coming stock, so it’s good that we are getting the results on the track,” he said. 

For complete race results, click here.

by John Dunne, for Harnesslink