Trainer Guy Walter secured his third Group 1 $550,000 Patinack Farm Australian Oaks (2400m) at Randwick today with his outstanding filly Streama.
Streama gives trainer Guy Walter his third Australian Oaks winner - photo (c) Steve Hart
Streama was sent out the short priced favourite at $1.40 and it wasn’t until the final fifty metres that her followers were certain of collecting their money.
Walter was relieved to see Streama get the upper hand to score by a long head after having taken out the Oaks in 2002 with Republic Lass with Glen Boss aboard and also in 2004 with Wild Iris ridden by Larry Cassidy.
Winning jockey Hugh Bowman had Streama placed just behind the leaders leaving the straight the first time but when Luke Nolen on Thy circled the field at the 1200m and increased the tempo, was shuffled back to midfield.
Nolen then moved away on the home turn with Blake Shinn on Aliyana Tilde going with him in a move to get a break on the favourite.
But Bowman didn’t panic and let the Stratum filly balance up in the straight and gradually wore the pair down to score by a long head from Aliyana Tilde ($14) with a length and a quarter to Thy ($12) in third place.
Walter will now spell Streama who collected her second Group 1 win after winning the $400,000 Flight Stakes (1600m) at Randwick in the Spring and taking her total number of wins to six from thirteen and prizemoney over the $1.1m mark.
“She had to make a fair bit of ground the way the race was run. That’s probably not her forte the 2400m but she’s got away with it,” Walter said.
“I’m really pleased with her. She’s done a great job and we’ll give her nice break now. I’ll give her a nice spell and look at Cup week for her, The Myer and possibly the Emirates.”
Walter has a long association the Coughlan family who race the filly and was a bit sad that Mr Coughlan was unable to be at Randwick to see his filly win due to illness.
Bowman said that the tempo of the race changed on several occasions and it made the job a little bit harder, but she got the job done in the end.
“It was an awkwardly run race, it wasn’t ideal and wasn’t exactly where I wanted to be, “ Bowman said.
“I kept her relaxed and I thought about going approaching the 600m but then the pressure went on so I thought I would wait, she has a good turn of foot and makes her own luck.”
Even though Streama slogged it out over the 2400m, Bowman thinks her best distance will be over 1600m and 2000m.
“I don’t know if she will be mile and a half horse in the future. She’ll be an ideal miler, she might get a nice 2000m but I’d be doubtful if she’ll be a mile and a half horse.”
