Second Stakes Win for Scapolo

5 May 2014

Classy galloper Scapolo (NZ) (Bachelor Duke) added a second stakes win to his impressive record with a convincing performance in the Listed $50,000 D Reynolds Electrical Great Easter Stakes (1400m) at Riccarton on Saturday.

SCAPOLO Great Easter Stks Race Images

Scapolo (NZ) wins the Listed D Reynolds Electrical Great Easter Stakes.
Photo courtesy of Race Images.

This season’s Group 2 Coupland Bakeries’ Mile winner on the same track was a last start winner at Marlborough on 24 April under 62kgs, having not raced since the Group 1 NRM Sprint at the start of February.

Trained by Kevin Myers, the Bachelor Duke gelding began well to sit outside the leader Elusive Tracy (NZ) (Elusive City) on the testing Heavy 11 track for rider David Walker.

Walker found the best part of the track up against the outside rail in the home straight and Scapolo surged to the lead, widening the margin the further they went to win by 4.5 lengths over Elusive Tracy who fought bravely for second in front of Electronic Motion (Snippetson).

“It was an impressive win as it was a pretty testing track,” commented rider David Walker. “He is a pretty versatile horse, he has never really gone a bad race. He is probably well up to going overseas and doing well.

“He seems to be just as good on the good tracks as well as the heavy tracks. He is a long striding horse but he seems to travel well through the wet tracks, which is a good asset to have.”

Saturday’s win was Scapolo’s ninth from 18 starts, with seven minor placings also to his credit. The gelding has earned $334,545 in stakes money for his owners Anne, Khalif, Rick, Sandy & Teneka Hill.

Bred by The Oaks Stud, Scapolo is out of Kadesa (Zabeel), a dual winner in Australia and a sister to Listed winner Zingo (Zabeel). His third dam is the Group 2 winner Noble Mark (On Your Mark), a Group 1 placegetter in England.

Myers purchased Scapolo for $40,000 at the 2011 Karaka Select Sale from The Oaks Stud.

Bachelor Duke sired his first Group 1 winner this season with Shuka (NZ) winning the Group 1 Captain Cook Stakes. Bachelor Duke has one weanling catalogued in New Zealand Bloodstock’s National Weanling & Broodmare Sale next Monday.