Benaud too classy for rivals at Wyong

Benaud is more accustomed to Group 1s than Class 1s and it showed at Wyong on Tuesday when the grey gelding beat up on four hapless rivals in the $40,000 Happy Retirement Isorich Class 1 & Maiden Plate.

The John O’Shea-trained four-year-old recorded his first win since debut victory at Nowra in September 2021 when he ambled home by 6-1/4 lengths under Tyler Schiller in the 2100-metre event.

In between wins, the half-brother to Group 1 winners Tofane and No Compromise finished second in last year’s Group 1 ATC Australian Derby, having contested four other races at the highest level.

The Wyong assignment was designed to get the son of Reliable Man to learn how to win again and O’Shea’s assistant trainer Tom Charlton was thrilled to see him do it so emphatically.

“He needed to do that, to be fair,” Charlton said.

“We’ve been so happy with him throughout the last 12 months and perhaps this is the bit of confidence that he needed.

“He stretched out well and he pricked his ears to the line. All the things you wanted to see him do today we’ve seen, so it was a good exercise.”

Benaud headed to Wyong off an eighth placing in the Listed McKell Cup (2000m), which followed a Mornington Cup fifth placing, but last spring was going well enough to be sent around $11 in the Caulfield Cup.

After defeating Fleet Commander, who is out of the former champion filly Atlantic Jewel, at Wyong, Benaud now has two wins, three seconds and one third from 20 starts for $584,980 in stakes.

He may now rise back sharply in grade with Thursday week’s $200,000 Listed Grafton Cup (2350m) a possible next start.

“He needed to win well and he did that, so we’ll see how he comes through and he might be a possible for Grafton next week,” Charlton said.