Horse Racing

She may be a double figure outsider in the markets and facing a tough ask against the season’s best stayers, but Cranbourne-based horseman Greg Eurell is hoping his mare Pinker Pinker can go all the way to the Caulfield Cup 2011 after her win in the $200,000 Group 2 Let’s Elope Stakes (1400m) at Flemington on Saturday.

Pinker Pinker will be given the chance to take on the boys in the 2011 Caulfield Cup this spring

Reset four-year-old Pinker Pinker ($6.50) enjoyed her third Group race victory on the weekend, ace hoop Glen Boss guiding this year’s AJC Oaks third placegetter to a quarter length win over Peter Moody’s in-form Mid Summer Music ($6) while race favourite, the Peter Snowden-trained Parables ($3.40) finished a further length away third.

Pinker Pinker has now won three of her four starts at Flemington, boasts an unbeaten second-up record, and is showing nice improvement after she ran fifth to Mid Summer Music first-up in the Cockram Stakes at Caulfield.

Eurell is confident that as Pinker Pinker continues to step up in distance this prep, she will also continue to show progression and he has his fingers crossed that the $2.5 million Group 1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) on October 15 will become a realistic goal.

“It was a terrific effort,” Eurell said of Pinker Pinker’s Let’s Elope Stakes win.

“Her first-up effort was very, very good and the step up to the 1400 metres today was idea.

“She’s very strong second-up.

“It was a good effort and she didn’t get knocked around in the run and ideally we’d like to step up to the mile next week at Moonee Valley.”

The next-up mile run Eurell refers to is the $200,000 W.H. Stocks Stakes (1600m) this Saturday, September 10, meaning she will still be untested in open company.

“It’s a big step out of mares grade to take on the boys so we’ll just take it step by step,” Eurell explained.

“Ideally she’ll step up to a 2000 metre race after the Stocks and we’ll work it out from there depending how she’s going.”

Currently Pinker Pinker is sitting well down the Caulfield Cup 2011 ballot order having been allocated just 50kg when weights were released last week.

“She’s nicely weighted in the Caulfield Cup and she can get the trip easily enough,” Eurell said.

“Hopefully we pick the right races along the way and being a mare give her confidence and don’t make the runs too hard.

“She’s honest as the day’s long.”

In the 2011 Caulfield Cup odds at Luxbet, Pinker Pinker is paying $26 to not only make the field but win, shorter odds than the likes of reigning Melbourne Cup winner Americain ($35) and defending Caulfield Cup champion Descarado ($35).

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