It was a heavyweight title fight that certainly delivered on its billing.
Saturday night’s $150,000 Group 1 Cranbourne Cup (2555m) will be talked about for many years to come after champion pacer Leap To Fame produced possibly the greatest performance of his career.
The horse known as ‘Larry’ – and his trainer-driver Grant Dixon – had to dig as deep into an endless bag of tricks as they’ve ever dug before; running down Victoria Cup winner Kingman in the shadows of the post to claim a third-consecutive Cranbourne Cup triumph.
Kingman looked all over a winner with 100-metres left to run, before Leap To Fame unleashed a withering finishing burst to nail him on the line.
The champ stopped the clock in a mile rate of 1:55.1, a new course record at Cranbourne.
Leap To Fame’s win was even more meritorious after drawing gate four; with Kingman leaving quickly from the inside alley to take the early lead.
Leap To Fame ($2 fav) sat outside of his main challenger ($2.40) throughout, while local hero Bulletproof Boy ($12) gained a perfect run behind the lead after splitting the highly fancied pair in the score-up.
Bulletproof Boy, trained at Cranbourne by Scott Ewen and driven skilfully by James Herbertson, finished third behind the two superstars; clearly his best finish in his fifth attempt at his home cup.
The rivalry between Leap To Fame and Kingman continues to grow, with the pair going head-to-head in the Shepparton (Group 3), Ballarat (Group 2) and Cranbourne Cups over the course of 15 days.
Kingman saluted at Shepparton before Leap To Fame balanced the ledger with an all-the-way win at Ballarat.
But this was something special, giving a rival champion a head start and a beating.
Dixon was full of respect for both horses as he returned to the winner’s enclosure post-race.
He praised the run of Kingman, who was stranded roadside on his way to Cranbourne from Shepparton; stopping for two hours due to float failure.
“He felt super the whole way, but to Kingman’s credit, obviously he had a tough trip down here with the truck, and they really made a race of it, that’s for sure,” Dixon said.
“I wasn’t even sure, right on the line; I knew I got super close, and obviously close enough, but not knowing the track and the winning post I wasn’t 100-percent confident until the numbers went up.”
Leap To Fame is now just two wins away from winning a $1million Victorian bonus.
The second half of the four-race assignment includes this Saturday’s $150,000 Group 1 Kilmore Cup, before the time-honoured $250,000 Group 1 Hunter Cup takes pride of place at Melton on Saturday 14 February.
“That’s why we came down early, to have a good try at it, but he’s still got to have another good week and do it,” Dixon said.
“But, as a rule, if he’s fit and well, he normally loves racing; it won’t hurt him if he’s all healthy and well.”
Also chasing a bonus is champion trotting mare Keayang Zahara after taking out the $75,000 Group 1 Cranbourne Trotters’ Cup (2080m).
The brown mare, five, – Volstead/Keayang Yankee – has now won 23 of her 24 career starts and amassed more than $1million in prizemoney.
Her winning purse will grow by an additional $500,000 in bonuses if she can continue her winning run in the $250,000 Group 1 Great Southern Star Final at Melton (1720m) on February 14.
