Resounding pre-post favourite Chautauqua has produced an impressive final straight sprint to claim the Group 3 Hawkesbury Guineas (1400m) this afternoon ahead of Katie’s Cove and Barbed.

Jumping from the gates reasonably, the Encosta De Lago gelding settled nearly five lengths off the pace of early leaders Dubawi Dream, Ryker and Fuerza, who set a fair running tempo rounding the bend.

Sticking to the rails, Chautauqua quickly took up the pace and pulled clear from the main pack, sustaining a strong enough sprint to finish only half a length in the clear.

Trainer John Hawkes was understandably delighted to claim saddle Chautauqua to victory in the 2014 Hawkesbury Guineas, and revealed future plans for the three-year-old following the race.

“He didn’t begin the best, which really wasn’t our plan; we were really hoping to go a bit more forward”

“He’s very patient and he knows what our horses can do.

“He’s a very promising young horse but still does a few things wrong, so when he puts it all together I think he’ll be a lovely horse next season.

“He’s only been lightly raced, we’ve looked after him and he’s a well-bred young horse and the owners have been fantastic; they’ve let us be patient with him.

“If he pulls up good he’ll go to Scone and the Inglis Classic, and then the paddock.”

Jockey James McDonald delivered a typically strong ride on Chautauqua in the 2014 Hawkesbury Guineas, revealing it was not all smooth sailing for the pair.

“He’s got immense ability but just does that much wrong; he gives me such a hard time – misses the start and pulls hard and then runs greenly” McDonald said immediately after dismounting.

“He’s just started his preparation and obviously John will earmark some nice races for him; hopefully he’s another Brisbane Candidate.”

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2014 Hawkesbury Guineas Results

Finish	No.	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Margin	Bar.	Weight	Starting Price
1	5	CHAUTAUQUA	Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes	James McDonald	–	14	56kg	$4F
2	15	KATIE’S COVE	Roger James	Jason Collett	1.5L	11	54kg	$6.50
3	1	BARBED	Peter Snowden	Kerrin McEvoy	2.8L	6	57kg	$11
4	10	SPY DECODER (NZ)	Anthony Cummings	Brenton Avdulla	3L	3	56kg	$7.50
5	9	RYKER	Gai Waterhouse	Tim Clark	3.1L	9	56kg	$31
6	14	NORTHERN GLORY	Gai Waterhouse	Adam Hyeronimus	4.3L	7	54kg	$4.60
7	11	DUBAWI DREAM	Scott Singleton	Padraig Beggy	5.6L	5	56kg	$51
8	4	ESTONIAN PRINCESS	Scott Aspery	Ms Kathy O’Hara	6.8L	4	56kg	$17
9	7	KASIANO LAD	Jason Coyle	Jay Ford	7.8L	8	56kg	$12
10	6	SINJOREN	Peter Snowden	Christian Reith	9L	13	56kg	$31
11	16	KAYJAY’S JOY	Tony McEvoy	Glyn Schofield	9.2L	12	54kg	$10
12	13	KING’S TARIFF	Joan Pracey	Joshua Parr	9.4L	2	56kg	$91
13	3	TWILIGHT ROYALE	Bjorn Baker	Jeff Lloyd	11.1L	1	57kg	$61
14	8	FUERZA	Bjorn Baker	Damien Thornton (a)	11.5L	10	56kg	$51