Classy four-year-old Kencella has continued a strong preparation at Rosehill Gardens this afternoon, claiming a comfortable victory in the Group 3 Maurice McCarten Stakes (1100m) ahead of Va Pensiero and resounding pre-post favourite That’s A Good Idea.

Having broken from the gates particularly well, the talented Exceed And Excel gelding went straight to the lead ahead of Senta De Noche and Flamberge to dictate pace, controlling the front rounding the final bend to open a huge lead and maintain to the line to jog home by nearly two lengths.

Trainer John O’Shea was thrilled with Kencella’s strong performance in the 2014 Maurice McCarten Stakes, but conceded they might have taken reaped the benefits from That’s A Good Idea’s poor start.

“To be fair we’ve probably had a little bit of luck with the favourite missing the kick but we’ll take it, we’re probably due a bit” O’Shea said following the race

“I think he’s got an affiliation with the track and distance and so we’ve sort of tried to wait until we’ve got a race like this.

Having opened his current preparation with a strong win in the Carlton Mid Handicap (1100m) on October 27^th, O’Shea said further plans are yet to be set in stone this season.

“We’ll get home, he’s been in work for quite a long time and he’s got a job done now so we’ll just see how he pulls up.”

Jockey James McDonald delivered a sensation ride on Kencella in the Maurice McCarten Stakes and was quick to heap the praise on O’Shea’s efforts in training.

“He’s a very nice horse that John’s just done a wonderful job with” McDonald said immediately after dismounting.

“Great training effort to freshen him up and then put him in a good Group 3 race fit, primed and ready to go.

Having broken a class record in the Group 3 race this afternoon, McDonald said Kencella’s cruising speed was pivotal in setting a new benchmark time.

“We were flying along; he’s just got a high cruising speed and he took control of the race and he was too quick” he added.

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2014 Maurice McCarten Stakes Results

Finish	No.	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Margin	Bar.	Weight	Starting Price
1	5	KENCELLA	John O’Shea	James McDonald	–	6	55kg	$4
2	4	VA PENSIERO	Jason Coyle	Tim Clark	1.3L	2	55kg	$7.50
3	3	THAT’S A GOOD IDEA	Joseph Pride	Nash Rawiller	1.8L	3	56kg	$2.90F
4	2	FLAMBERGE	Peter G Moody	Chad Schofield	2.7L	1	57.5kg	$5.50
5	7	DIAMOND OASIS	John O’Shea	Glen Boss	2.8L	5	55kg	$16
6	6	SENTA DE NOCHE	Kris Lees	Christian Reith	5.7L	4	55kg	$10
7	8	SHIVARCHI	Robert Price	Craig Newitt	6.9L	8	55kg	$41
8	1	TITLE	Joseph Pride	Jay Ford	9L	7	58kg	$17