Horse Racing

Love Conquers All will target the Emirates Stakes after winning the Betfair Stakes at Caulfield

In a Caulfield Cup Day win for Team Hawkes this afternoon, honest Mossman five-year-old Love Conquers All scored a possible 2011 Emirates Stakes target this Melbourne Cup Carnival with a strong win over a quality field in the $125,000 Group 3 Betfair Stakes(1400m).

Giving Hong Kong-based Aussie hoop Darren Beadman a black-type double on Caulfield Cup Day following his earlier success with the Bart Cummings-trained filly Gliding in the Ethereal Stakes, Love Conquers All enjoyed a nice race with cover against the building breeze at Caulfield to score their second Group win of the season.

Drawn to win in gate one, Love Conquers All got away well from their rails start and was one of the early leaders before settling into fourth on the inside, getting the cover they needed from the strong wind.

“You can notice it when you turn for home, it’s a real head-on wind with a bit of force behind it,” Beadman noted.

Utah Saints found the front running position upon settling and held onto their lead until the turn, the pace set being a pretty genuine one.

On the run for home Love Conquers All and Beadman forced a passage for themselves and hit the front with 200 metres left to travel.

Under the whip, the Luxbet favourite Love Conquers All raced up and charged home strongly to score a dominant two length victory over a fast-finishing Albert The Fat while the Peter Snowden-trained Pinwheel finished came home to finish off the all Sydneysider Betfair Stakes trifecta.

The winner was just too good for them in the Betfair Stakes result, Love Conquers All getting a beautiful run in transit, edging out around the turn with the finish at the end to hold off the challengers.

“The horse gave me a beautiful ride,” Beadman said.

“He just pinged himself out. He put himself in the right position and just settled nicely.

“It was a good solid win.”

Representing the stable was co-trainer Wayne Hawkes who trains in partnership with his brother Michael and legendary father John Hawkes.

“It was a good effort,” he said of Love Conquers All winning the Betfair Stakes.

“It would knock your baseball cap off how strong the wind is here and he just got the cover he needed peeling out when he did.

“He had the winners run…he’s Group 1 placed around four times so he gets in pretty well in the weights in these race.”

As for Love Conquers All’s spring grand final, Hawkes named the $1 million Group 1 Emirates Stakes (1600m) at Flemington on Saturday November 5 as a genuine goal.

“On Emirates Stakes Day there may be a nice little race for him,” Hawkes said with a bit of cheek.

“Could be the Emirates, could be.”

With Beadman obviously right at the peak of his form today with two magnificent already up his silks sleeve, the money is starting to really get serious on his Caulfield Cup mount Mighty High who is also set to get the inside run from barrier one.

Check out all the Caulfield Cup Day odds and betting options now, including those on Mighty High to become the Caulfield Cup 2011 winner, by signing up with Australia’s leading online bookie Luxbet and enjoy a $500 bonus bet by quoting the codeword BONUSBET.

2011 Betfair Stakes Results & Finishing Order