Trainer Todd Smart with the trophy and Cashbook gives his stable his second win in the Inglis in 3 years.
Former Gundagai boy Todd Smart celebrated his second Inglis two-year-old stakes win in the last three years over the weekend with booming gelding Cashbook extending out and winning by over a length against what looked to be a very promising field.
Cashbook finished eighth in his first start at Wagga after being caught deep and failing to show his potential. The gelding by Flying Artie out of Madonnica broke through and was well found in the market, getting backed in from $15 to $7.50, halving the opening quote, yet still offering a lucrative price for punters who were willing to forgive the tough Wagga run.
Drawn wide once again, Smart’s boy had to settle three wide though the first 100 metres with fancied runner Gilette (Exceedance x Beyond The Dream) beating it out of the machine and cutting across, whilst Cosmonaut (Cosmic Force x Vodianova) booted up along the fence.
Cashbook and Gilette eventually used their superior acceleration to cross the field, Gilette leading and Cashbook sitting outside, just off it. From there it was a gritty performance from the talented gelding, given the go forward at the 400 metres by Adam Hyeronimus in the saddle and responded brilliantly, co-leader Gillette tried to go with it but Cashbook was just that little bit too good, kicking away to win by a strong margin and taking home the $136,000 purse.
Smart’s first Inglis winner came in 2023 with another talented gelding, Love Shuck by Miki Isle (JPN) out of Oyster Bell, who won his edition by a much closer margin, swamping them late to win by 0.06L.
Smart said, “We had the Inglis Challenge for two-year-olds and won $136,000 in one go with Cashbook. He trialled up well, we trialled it again, and he trialled out well, so I was very happy with the horse going into it.”
“Straight after that trial, he did a clean run at Goulburn the Friday before, and I said to my owners that I thought the horse would be very, very competitive in that race. The trial gave me confidence that he could do well.
“He’s going to go to the paddock now and he’ll have a spell. I made a decision that we will spell him.”
“I think he’s going to be a better three-year-old. He’ll probably get to the 1400 or 1600 as a three-year-old, so let’s give him a spell as he’s done his job.”
“We bought this horse at the Sales to run in this race, it’s happened, it’s won, so it’s all gone to plan.”
“He’s a bloody nice horse, and if he doesn’t win another race now, he’s done his job, but he will, he will win plenty more races, as he’s a nice horse.”
Smart is optimistic that his stable has more winners to come.
“We’ve got The Unique Star, a 3-year-old gelding, who won at Sapphire Coast on Sunday. I’ve got a fair opinion of him. He’s a good horse going forward.”
“With these two-year-olds, I guess our stable has got a bit of a knack for them now. We know how to treat young horses, and they’re only ready when they’re ready, not when we think they’re ready.
“The same goes for the ability of a horse. You can only guide them to be their best, to get to the best of their ability, but it’s obviously up to your staff and your riders and things like that to try and get the best out of it. But the end of the day, the horse has got to do the work, not you.
“It’s just a bloody good thrill and, you know, sometimes you can get a bit of luck and it’s happened two out of three times now. We won the race with Love Shuck two years ago.”
Cashbook is owned by a syndicate that includes Mr B J McAlister, Mr A J McAlister, Mr M K Kingwill, Mr A L Castles, Mr D J O’Loughlin, Mr J J Macfadyen, Mr R Wheeler, Mr J P Sheehan, Hopper 150, Mr C Smith, Mr A J Carolan, Mr C J Leonard, Mr G R Harris, Mr I Freeman, Mr J Oehm, Mr P Wurth, Mr M Ryan, Mr J Smith, Mr M A Bartley, Flash Smith & Carrot Hill.
-Tully Potts
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