Kiwi galloper He’s Remarkable will not be accepted for the Kingston Town Classic 2011, their Cambridge-based trainer Roger James confirming it was back home to New Zealand for the four-year-old after their devastating loss on protest in the Railway Stakes last Saturday.
Pentire four-year-old He’s Remarkable was first over the line in the $1 million Group 1 Railway Stakes (1600m), Perth’s richest race, at Ascot on the weekend.
After rival jockey Shaun O’Donnell aboard Luckygray, however, successfully lodged a protest against He’s Remarkable’s hoop Kerrin McEvoy for interference, they had their first place regulated to second and Luckygray was officially declared the Railway Stakes winner.
Despite the strong run by his horse in the feature, James has shelved plans to continue on at the Festival of Perth Racing for the $500,000 Group 1 Kingston Town Classic (1800m) on December 3.
Instead He’s Remarkable, a winner of five of their 15 career starts to date, will head back across the Tasman for a break before being bought back to Australia for the 2012 Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival.
James, who was both skeptical and devastated over the stewards’ decision to reverse the top two placings in the Railway, has named the 2012 Doncaster Handicap as the main autumn aim for He’s Remarkable.
“I wouldn’t mind a dollar for everyone that’s told me we’ve been robbed but it doesn’t change things,” James said on Sunday.
“I thought it was a bad decision.”
Originally He’s Remarkable was bought over to Melbourne this season to race in the Group 1 Emirates Stakes (1600m) at Flemington on November 5, but after missing out on a spot in the field they had to settle for a consolation win in the $100,000 Visit Victoria Handicap (1600m) on the day before their trip to Ascot.
They could get their chance to atone for missing out on two Group 1’s down under next year with the lucrative $2 million Group 1 Doncaster Handicap (1600m) to run at Royal Randwick on March 21.
“I said to the owners we’ll win the Doncaster in Sydney next autumn by a neck or a head, and we’ll look back and say if he’d won the Railway, he probably wouldn’t have won the Doncaster with the extra weight,” James said in a more positive tone.
While He’s Remarkable is out of Kingston Town Classic contention, it is still a top class list of hopefuls heading towards the feature.
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2011 Kingston Town Classic Odds
