Australian wonder mare Black Caviar extended her unbeaten streak to 25 races in some style on Saturday, blowing away her rivals in the TJ Smith Stakes at Sydney’s Randwick Racecourse.
Her 25th victory was also her 15th at the sports highest level, overtaking the mark of 14 Group 1 wins set by the legendary Kingston Town in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
It was in 2011 that Black Caviar posted what many consider her greatest-ever performance in this very race, beating Hay List by three lengths after trailing him by the same distance coming into the home straight. On this occasion no such heroics were required.
Facing one of her toughest-ever fields, including her old foe Hay List, admittedly not the force he once was, and the in-form Bel Sprinter, Black Caviar’s regular rider Luke Nolen had to jockey for position in the early stages as he sought to overcome an unfavorable inside draw.
The decisive move came around 300 meters out, when Nolen guided her away from the softer ground by the rail and settled her behind the leaders towards the middle of the track. From there, all Nolen had to do was pull the pin and the six-year-old instantly responded, lengthening away from the rest of the field with her to claim her eight consecutive Group 1 win.
All day Sydneysiders had celebrated the presence of one of Australia’s most popular sporting heroes. Flags in her trademark salmon and black colors fluttered over Sydney’s iconic harbor, while the capacity crowd ensured Randwick Racecourse was filled the rafters.
Speaking after the race, Black Caviar’s trainer Peter Moody praised the crowd, adding that he was “extremely proud” of his mare for breaking Kingston Town’s record. As Black Caviar was cheered on her way back to the winners’ enclosure her jockey noted, “You can see what she means to racing. To be part of that — words escape me.”
Source-CNN
