Promising entire Mahisara captured a valuable black type on Saturday when he won the $150,000 Group 3 Variety Sandown Stakes at Sandown –Hillside.
The well bred son of More Than Ready has remained an entire into his four-year-old season and the move has paid off connections with Mahisara impressing in two runs over the Spring Carnival.
Ridden by Craig Williams, Mahisara jumped well from the barriers and Williams was quick to push him forward but the lead wasn't there and he was forced to sit three wide early before sitting outside race leader Jungle Ruler as the field rounded the turn.
Early in the straight Williams held the entire together but at the 375m Jungle Ruler was quick to fade and so Williams took the opportunity to go for home and Mahisara exploded. Passing the 200m the pair was five in front and they didn't look like stopping.
Challengers began to appear from the back of the pack but Mahisara kept going strong to the line to score a comfortable win. The margins were two and three quarters to Morant with Raspberries a length and a quarter away in third. The overall time was 1.29.20 and the last 600m was 34.59.
“He is a bull and you have to let him do everything his own way and Craig was forced to make a decision and he took the right one,” Messara said.
“He quickened far better than I expected him to, I expected him to run on but he showed a great turn of foot today.
“It is one race at a time, we will chat to the owners this afternoon and draw up some battle plans but today was the goal for the immediate prep and we will take it from here.
“He is a very handy horse.”
“For a jockey he is actually a beautiful ride,” Williams said. “Paula and Leah have all the problems with him before the race but when you got on him he is a gentleman.
“Paul and myself were under a little bit of pressure here today, we had the owner here, Ananda Kirshnan, and is great for Zipping Classic day that we have got such a well-respected and high profile person here to watch the race and for me it is a great note to finish on.
“I fly out on Monday and my first weekend is the World Super Jockey Series which culminates in the Japan Cup but this week, well done to Paul Messara and all his staff, they have really turned this horse around.”
