Jess joins special list with brilliant Better

Being able to replicate some of the deeds of her late, celebrated father Alan has been one of the joys of Jess Tubbs’ young but thriving training career and she ticked another box on a terrific night of Melton metropolitan harness racing.

The Tubbs name will now feature three times on the renowned City Of Melton Plate honour roll, with Jess teaming with reinsman Greg Sugars and Better Eclipse (Betterthancheddar) to replicate the deeds her sister Amy (driver) and dad Alan (trainer) achieved in 2008 with Melpark Major.

“It means a lot for us to get this race under our belt, especially for Jess, she likes to tick off the bucket list the races that her dad and Amy have won previously,” Greg Sugars told TrotsVision.

“He took out the Melton Plate obviously with their special horse Melpark Major and to do it with our horse Better Eclipse is a real special moment for us.”

Better Eclipse zipped past the $600,000 mark in career earnings with victory in the Group 3 $50,000 feature, part of three races on the card that celebrated harness racing’s valued partnership with the City of Melton.

Two of those were snaffled by Tubbs and Sugars’ Larajay Farms, with veteran pacer A Gs White Socks continuing his great form for the stable in winning the Melton City Much More Stampede.

The nine-year-old sat in wait while Bulletproof Boy (second) and comeback kid Code Bailey (fourth) made the early running, circling the leaders in a 27.2-second final quarter to win by 2.7 metres with Tango Tara finishing well for third.

Sugars showed similar patience with Better Eclipse in the 34^th running of the City Of Melton Plate, having settled on to key rival Major Moth’s back in the running line while Outlaw Man led.

The front pair fought on well but Better Eclipse gradually ground to the lead in the straight, winning by a head from Outlaw Man with Major Moth finishing a close third.

“I thought he was pretty close to the mark but if something didn’t go his way that he might be vulnerable,” Sugars said of the winner.

“I’d say that will really tighten him up, his mannerisms just coming straight off the track he looks like he was still full of beans.

“I would say he couldn’t have gone any quicker up that straight, it was a pretty solid dash up over the last furlong or two, but I think he was strong enough.”

Better Eclipse is working towards a tilt at New Zealand’s $1 million Race By Grins on April 14 and Sugars was satisfied with how he was building on last year’s breakout four-year-old season.

“He’s had a bit of a break and obviously he’s a bit more seasoned to that style of racing, he’s physically a bit stronger in himself,” he said. “I wouldn’t say he’s a better racehorse necessarily than what he was beforehand, but he’s certainly a more mature animal and hopefully we can keep him competing at that high level for a few more seasons yet.”

Another horse with big plans that were further justified tonight is Mufasa Metro, who appeared in a class of his own in dominating the City Of Melton Scotch Notch Memorial.

Despite a bit of early speed underneath him from Nephew Of Sonoko and Lunchwitharthur, Mufasa Metro comfortably cruised to the lead and then opened the race up with a 58.3-second last half that saw him shoot clear for a 13-metre win.

“I’m very happy with him, he’s just getting better and better,” Justice told TrotsVision.

“He’s turning into a complete racehorse. When he first used to get out on to the track he’d want to rip and tear a bit and he’d be pretty keen to go in the warm up, but his last two he’s just jogged around like an old cart horse, he’s just been so relaxed.

“He’s exceeding my expectations. We are going to set the Inter Dominion for him in Queensland, so that will be his main mission this year in December. He may just have one more run and then I think it will be time for him to go out and grow a bit and get a bit stronger.”

For complete results, click here.

by Michael Howard, for Harness Racing Victoria