Purdon and Arafura show their class

With 400 metres to run, most were giving Arafura (Sweet Lou) no chance of winning the $225,000 Group One Tennant Engineering New Zealand Pacing Oaks, but under a masterful drive from the ‘Oaks King’ Mark Purdon, she stormed home to nab gallant pacemaker Captains Mistress.

ARAFURA REPLAY

“It’s just massive. It was a very hard watch. I’ve got a lot of time for this filly. It was a very patient drive from Mark. I thought we had no hope turning in. I just can’t believe it to be honest,” an emotional Hayden Cullen said. “There’s a fair bit of wind out their tonight and Mark played the patience game. Luckily they went hard enough up front and she was good enough to come over the top of them,” he added.

The winning margin was half a neck, with Princess Gracy finishing second and a further neck back to Chicago Sky who ran third.

The winning time was 3-10.1 well outside the race and New Zealand record of 3-08.2 held by 2019 winner Princess Tiffany.

The win was Purdon’s sixth in the race as a driver. His other wins are Julie Vance (1988), Pacific Flight (1993), Adore Me (2013), Dream About Me (2016) and Shez All Rock (2018).

“She’s one of those ones you do have to know and the more he’s driven her the more he’s worked her out. Normally we drive her for her staying prowess, but she showed a bit of zip tonight.”

Owned by Kevin McKerrow and Christine Beckhaus, Arafura was bought for $55,000 at the NZB Standardbred Sales at Karaka. Her win further emphasizes the great cross Sweet Lou has with Bettor’s Delight mares. Other good winners from that cross are Darling Me (13), Duchess Of Megxit (12), Hadron Collider (7), and Piccadilly Pete (7).

The $123,750 winning stake takes Arafura’s three year old earnings to $275,335 and surely cements her position as the top three year old filly of the season.

For complete race results, click here.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink