Imported stayer Moriarty returned to winning form with a tough victory in the 2014 Eagle Farm Cup this afternoon.
Moriarty scored his first race win since the 2013 Spring Racing Carnival when he took out the Eagle Farm Cup this afternoon. Photo by: Daniel Costello
Moriarty performed well at the highest level of racing during the 2014 Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival and was far from disgraced in both the Group 2 Hollindale Stakes (1800m) and Group 1 Doomben Cup (2000m), but had not scored a race win since he took out the Group 2 Hill Stakes (2000m) during the 2013 Spring Racing Carnival.
Jockey Nash Rawiller put Moriarty into a beautiful position just behind the leaders Wistful and Mr O’Ceirin in the early stages of the race, but looked as though he was going to be blocked for a run in the final stages of the race.
Rawiller waited patiently before pushing Moriarty through a narrow gap between Wistful and Mr O’Ceirin and he showed strong acceleration to claim the 2014 Eagle Farm Cup from Mr O’Ceirin and consistent mare Floria.
“He has always been a bulldog when it comes to those narrow little runs and when he gets into those situations he seems to really put in,” Rawiller said after the race.
“I didn’t ride him last start, but I thought that he looked better today and right on key he is hitting his top form right into the carnival.
“He has done a good job and has been up for a while and it is a good training from Chris to have him peaking again this year.”
Chris Waller stable representative Analese Trollope admitted that she was concerned that Moriarty would not get out of the pocket in the final 300 metres of the Eagle Farm Cup, but said that she was happy with the performance of the imported galloper and confirmed that he would press on to the Group 2 Brisbane Cup (2400m) at Eagle Farm next weekend.
“He is a very nice horse and he seems to like being in work,” Trollope said.
“Chris is pretty easy on him once they are up and racing and fit and that gets him to just keep ticking along.
“On his best day he does have a very good sprint.”
Moriarty will have the opportunity to become the first back-to-back winner of the Brisbane Cup since Fair Patton took out both the 1964 and 1965 editions of the race.
