Launceston Cup falls to Asva in local sweep
Asva, beaten early in the Hobart Cup, attracted no betting interest for the Launceston Cup, where the wagering was led by outsiders Ziryab and Taramansour from the mainland.
Those heavily backed pair failed to feature at the wire as Asva guided home a home-state trifecta with Zulu Angel in second and Distrustful Award third. Finishing sixth, No Rumours was the highest-placed raider.
"I knew I had a fair horse, I put a line through the last run," winning trainer Glenn Stevenson said.
"If he can get put to sleep in his chance.
"He's always shown the ability, it's just been a matter of actually getting mature. It's a maturity thing that's been with him, and he's finally grown into the horse he is."
Riding midfield or worse, Asva travelled wide around the bend in the straight with jockey Jett Stanley opting to break clear five wide on the veteran gelding, taking command 400m from the finish.
The preparation differed markedly between trainer and rider in their assessments after the race.
"To be honest, you sit, and you go 'what's happened here, what's he doing? Oh my God' He won though so it's a great ride," Stevenson said.
"Once we got into the side straight, there was a three wide moving line which I thought would take me where we needed to be," winning jockey Jett Stanley said.
"From about the 700m, I was going too well. For 2400m horses, if you don't know whether they can do it or not, there is only one way to test them – that's just to let them go when they are travelling that well.
"He went around them so easily and effortlessly. From the 200m I was just trying to think of my salute."
On the undercard, Barry Campbell and Star Thoroughbreds' Sanniya powered to success in the Vamos Stakes (1400m), making it five wins in a row.
In the 3YO Classic (1200m), John Keys filled the first two spots with Swift Force ahead of Zambezi Blonde, as Steparty claimed victory in the Hellova Street Stakes (1600m) for a second Tasmanian win this preparation.
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