A cool ride by Hugh Bowman saw top class three year Bivouac score a tough win in the Group 1 $1m De Bortoli Wines Golden Rose (1400m) at Rosehill today.
Bivouac, above in the Goldolphin royal blue colours, beats off Yes Yes Yes to win the 2019 Golden Rose at Rosehill. Photo by Steve Hart.
The Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott trained Yao Dash ($9.50) set the pace with Bowman, who was returning to the saddle after recovering from a broken finger, seating at his girth on Bivouac.
Bowman still had the James Cummings trained colt under a tight hold until well into the straight and the Exceed And Excel colt was able to answer all the questioned that were thrown at him as the well backed Yes Yes Yes ($4.20) threw down the challenge.
The Chris Waller trained Yes Yes Yes with Nash Rawiller on top tried very hard to get past Bivouac, but to no avail while the third placegetter Exceedance ($4.80) made up some ground from back of the field.
Bivouac was sent out as the $2.50 favourite and didn’t let the punters down with a first class performance.
“He’s an experienced horse. You might say I served it up to him as a two-year-old but I could see what he can handle. He returned this campaign just a bundle of health, energy, athleticism,” Cummings said.
“It wasn’t necessarily ideal having so many runs before a Golden Rose like this early in the Spring.”
“I mean, it’s only September and I’m saddling him up and he’s feeling good about himself.”
“We know the key to the horse, we taught him to relax, we’ve trained him to run seven furlongs and you know he’s probably the best six-furlong three-year-old in the country. It’s a wonderful credit to the horse.”
Cummings said that he has plenty of options for Bivouac for the rest of the Spring Carnival and hasn’t ruled out the colt filling the Godolphin slot for the $14m The Everest (1200m) at Randwick on October 19.
Cummings also has options to go Melbourne for the Group 1 $2m Ladbrokes Caulfield Guineas (1600m) at Caulfield on October 12 if he want to step him up to the 1600m or drop him back to 1200m for the Group 1 $1.5m Coolmore Stud Stakes at Flemington on November 2.
“What do you do? He’s fought back through the line. I think races like the Coolmore are on the table. The Caulfield Guineas is worth consideration but he’s probably just too brilliant for that race so, yes, the Everest is an option.”
“I’ve had jockeys willing to ride him at 53kgs telling me all week he can’t get beaten in the race (Everest). I just can’t make that call. He’s a young colt, he looks a young colt who’s been able to show that sort of brilliance to break 34 for the last 600m in a Golden Rose and hold off a highly accomplished horse who beat him in the Todman as a two-year-old when things didn’t go ideally for him.”
“But he’s roared through the line and been too strong. There are plenty of options for us on the table – we are in a very commanding position with a horse like him and we’ve got a very important two weeks ahead to decide exactly what we do pay up for at 10am before the Everest.”
Bivouac’s price for The Everest has been halved from $26 to $13 at Ladbrokes.com.au.
