Stormfront, given a peach of a ride from the returning Noel Callow, was in a different league to his rivals in the $40,000 Dabble Cup, feature event at Fannie Bay on Wednesday.
The son of Frosted was the ruling favourite for the Day 6 feature over 1300m, and the punters were on good terms with themselves as far as 600m out.
After Forms Of Fear, Great Gust, Kangaroo Court and Shakattak led the field to the first turn off the back straight, Callow had Stormfront just behind them and ready to strike.
He angled out three wide down the side and on the point of the home turn, was upsides Forms Of Fear and Kangaroo Court and soon after, assumed control.
Callow booted his mount clear and the attractive grey sustained a strong gallop all the way to the line to score by two and a-quarter lengths from Bon’s Your Back, who did a great job from a wide draw, with Atlantic Ocean getting home well into third just under a length away.
After disappointing last time out in the Palmerston Rydges Cup over 1600m, trainer Peter Robl elected to come back in trip and it proved a masterstroke.
Robl, who will saddle up Zourata in the Palmerston and last year’s winner Hadouken in the Darwin Cup this weekend, said: “He just goes too keen over a mile at this stage, but the 1300m is perfect as with the faster speed, he can relax in the run.
“He probably won’t back up on Cup Day, but we’ll accept and see. He’s done his job really,” said Robl.
Callow, who only arrived in Darwin at 2am on race morning, had not ridden since late May in Queensland, and has since served a suspension for an altercation in the jockeys’ room at Doomben.
But the class rider, who won the Chief Minister’s Cup last year on Bear Story and will ride the same horse again in this year’s Darwin Cup, continued his love affair with the Fannie Bay track, on which he rode a quartet of wins during the 2024 Carnival.
Stormfront, who races in the Australian Bloodstock colours and includes among his large syndicate of owners NT enthusiasts Allen Fanning, Matthew Callaway, Nanette Fairall, Amanda Wren and Dwayne Hameister, who mixes his time between the Territory and South Australia, has now won five of just 13 starts, and with four placings as well, has stakes of $123,529.
Faberge Tzar gave his trainer Andrew Perdon his second win in five days in Darwin when scoring easily in the Follow Me Dabble On Tik Tok Handicap (1600m).
In the hands of Kristo Sardelic, Faberge Tzar trailed the leader Star Casino throughout, took control early in the home straight and held on gamely to win by two lengths from Star Casino, with Kieffer a battling third ahead of topweight Yaki Ishi.
Perdon, who is enjoying his second visit to the Carnival after a first time last year, saddled up Dummy Spit to win last Saturday, and Faberge Tzar has now won three times at Fannie Bay from nine attempts. His stakes stand at $76,000, the result of four wins and four placings from 25 career starts.
The Sale trainer very nearly made it a double in the Dabble You Better Believe It TROBIS Maiden when Thank God I Gothim, in the hands of Aaron Sweeney, had a seemingly unassailable lead at the 100m mark, but No I’m Not, giving Sardelic a double, descended at such a speed that the margin at the line was a half-neck.
Trained by Chris Pollard, No I’m Not, a daughter of Yes Yes Yes, had been racing fairly consistently, with two seconds and two thirds from her ten career starts. She had been promising to break her maiden duck and the rising 4yo looks capable of adding to her record in the coming months.
The Girl’s Boy, in the hands of Raymond Vigar, provided Alice Springs trainer Kerry Petrick with her first win of the Carnival in the Dabble Copy Bet Handicap (1200m).
After settling fourth but a good way off the lead, The Girl’s Boy made up good ground towards the home turn and was in a challenging position soon after.
Sunzou, who trailed leader Kissing Supido, assumed control at the 250m mark but was soon overhauled by The Girl’s Boy, who went on to win by a little more than a length, with Starlite Rebel flying home into third just under two lengths back.
The Girl’s Boy had failed to earn a dividend in five previous starts in Darwin, but his overall record is impressive, his latest win his eighth from some 36 starts.
Field Of Praise (Angela Forster/Jarrod Todd) sat second in the run behind Tilussion but found a good kick in the straight to wrest the advantage with about 100m left to run out a length winner from the pacemaker.
It was Forster’s third winner of the Carnival and Todd, after a very slow start, has now bagged six winners and stands just one behind the Carnival premiership pacesetter Adam Nicholls.
Field Of Praise, owned by her trainer along with partner Darren Waterfall, is now the winner of three of her 29 starts, and with six seconds and three thirds, has stakemoney of almost $145,000.
Story Courtesy Andrew O’Toole