Shane Nichols’ smart mare I Am A Star returned to winning form at Moonee Valley on Friday night taking out the 2017 Stocks Stakes for the punters on way to likely Myer Classic title defence in November.

I Am A Star returned to winning form in the 2017 Stocks Stakes at Moonee Valley on Moir Stakes Night. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.
The bookies were taking no chances on the four-year-old daughter of I Am Invincible under the lights on Moir Stakes Night as I Am A Star jumped top fancy in the Group 2 $200,000 Zoustar Stocks Stakes (1600m).
She was scratched from Saturday’s Group 1 $1 million Epsom Handicap (1600m) field at Randwick in Sydney in favour of the Melbourne Group 2 and it proved a winning move by connections as she enjoyed her seventh career win at start number 19.
Her favouritism was despite the fact that I Am A Star hadn’t won a race since victory at the track in the Group 2 Sunline Stakes (1600m) back in March, and that her two latest runs produced seventh place efforts including behind Sword Of Light at Flemington in the Group 2 Let’s Elope Stakes (1400m).
Back up to a mile though I Am A Star ($3.50) bounced back to her best and enjoyed a quarter-length victory over Flying Jess ($18), while the in-form Lindsay Park-trained Hell Or Highwater ($4.20) rounded out the Stocks Stakes trifecta in a close third under a length off the winner.
“She had been going OK and things were in order and her work had been very good, but you’ve just got to strike a blow,” Mornington-based Nichols told the media post-win.
“To come and win today is just terrific.”
The Stocks Stakes results took I Am A Star up to two wins and a third from three runs over the Moonee Valley mile and boosted the mare’s prize money up to over $1.18 million.
Her main Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival aim is a return to Flemington Racecourse on Victoria Derby Day, November 4, to defend her title in the $500,000 Group 1 Myer Classic (1600m).
Success in that will see I Am A Star become the first back-to-back Myer Classic winner since the event was inaugurated in 1988.
The likely path into the feature will likely be via the Group 1 $500,000 Toorak Handicap (1600m) at Caulfield Racecourse on October 14 and the Group 2 $200,000 Moonee Valley Vase (2040m) run on Ladbrokes Cox Plate Day a fortnight later.
“She’s been running well,” Nichols said.
“She just needed to be in the right race, with the right weight, and Ben [Melham] took control of the race.
“It wasn’t a big margin but she’ll still improve off that and her second run at the mile (this preparation) will be better than the first one.”
To back I Am A Star next race at the right spring racing odds head to Ladbrokes.com.au today.
2017 Stocks Stakes Results & Finishing Order
Moonee Valley Race 6 (9:00pm) – 29/09/2017
Place | # | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Br. | Wgt. | SP |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 7 | I AM A STAR (NZ) | Shane Nichols | Ben Melham | – | 7 | 56.5kg | $3.50F |
2 | 6 | FLYING JESS | John Moloney | Tye Angland | 0.4L | 8 | 56.5kg | $18 |
3 | 1 | HELL OR HIGHWATER | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | Dean Yendall | 0.9L | 9 | 57kg | $4.20 |
4 | 11 | SMART AS YOU THINK | John McArdle | Jamie Mott | 2.4L | 11 | 56.5kg | $18 |
5 | 5 | CONSOMMATEUR (NZ) | Michael Kent | Beau Mertens (a) | 2.7L | 10 | 57kg | $41 |
6 | 3 | LIZZIE L’AMOUR (NZ) | Murray Baker & Andrew Forsman | Hugh Bowman | 2.8L | 1 | 57kg | $7 |
7 | 9 | JENNIFER LYNN | Darren Weir | Blake Shinn | 3.1L | 4 | 56.5kg | $11 |
8 | 10 | EXOCET | Anthony Freedman | Mark Zahra | 3.2L | 6 | 56.5kg | $20 |
9 | 4 | HAPPY HANNAH | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | Kerrin McEvoy | 5.2L | 2 | 57kg | $26 |
10 | 8 | MONTOYA’S SECRET | Leon & Troy Corstens | Joao Moreira | 5.7L | 12 | 56.5kg | $12 |
11 | 12 | HEAVENLY DESCENT | Mick Price | Jake Noonan | 5.8L | 5 | 56.5kg | $17 |
12 | 2 | RISQUE (NZ) | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | Regan Bayliss | 7.05L | 3 | 57kg | $51 |