La Crique sprouted wings in the Pukekohe straight on Saturday to come from a near-hopeless position and win the Gr.2 Dunstan Horsefeeds Auckland Thoroughbred Breeders’ Stakes (1400m) in a photo finish.
The Vadamos mare went into the fillies and mares' feature as the class act of the field, having won eight races and more than $1.3 million including Group One victories in the Arrowfield Stud Plate (1600m) and the Otaki-Maori WFA Classic (1600m). In her first start since taking out the A$500,000 Magic Millions National Classic (1600m) in Brisbane back in June, La Crique showed all the right signs with a strong finish into second with a 60.5kg topweight at Tauranga on November 2.
La Crique jumped as a $2.20 favourite in the Breeders' Stakes on Saturday, where she was ideally suited by the switch from handicap to weight-for-age conditions. But her chances appeared to plummet over the course of the next 60 seconds. The six-year-old dropped a long way back and settled near the tail of the field, then got pushed out wide on the track in the early part of the home straight.
As the 12 mares lined up across the track to lodge their claims with 200m remaining, La Crique was still among the last of them and had a mountain to climb to even get into the top three.
But what happened next showed why La Crique is one of New Zealand's standout thoroughbred talents. She responded to the urgings of first-time rider Michael McNab and launched a stunning late burst, making up half a dozen lengths in those last 200m and charging up alongside Lux Libertas in the final few strides. That rival gave her all to try to hold on, but La Crique caught her in the shadows of the post and won by a head. Lux Libertas finished second, a short head in front of Marotiri Molly, with a similar margin back to Hi Yo Sass Bomb in fourth.
"She just got left a little bit flat-footed at the top of the straight," McNab said. "A horse on the inside of us was sort of rolling around a bit and pushed us out.
"It took her a while to wind up, but once she got into stride, she was brilliant. At about the 150m I thought she was really starting to let rip, but I wasn't sure if she had enough time to get up. I was still cursing after the line.
"But I'm rapt to win on her and just rapt to ride her. I'm looking forward to the rest of her preparation."
La Crique's summer itinerary includes the Gr.1 TAB Classic (1600m) at Trentham on December 7 and the Gr.1 Zabeel Classic (2000m) at Ellerslie on Boxing Day. The TAB now rates her a $2.50 favourite for the TAB Classic.
"I really had to see the replay and the photo finish to be truly convinced that she won that race today," said Katrina Alexander, who trains La Crique in partnership with her husband Simon. "It was a super run by a gutsy, gutsy mare.
"She probably got further back than I wanted, but she's a horse that just keeps on coming. That's why we're keen to get her up over ground when we find the right targets for her on good tracks.
"She'll go to the TAB Classic at Trentham next, and then we want to carry on towards Ellerslie on Boxing Day. That was always the campaign that we had in mind for her at this point of the season."
Raced by her breeders John and Jan Cassin, La Crique has now had 22 starts for nine wins, nine placings and more than $1.43 million in stakes.
