When Inverloch won the 2021 Listed Wagga Wagga Gold Cup on Friday afternoon, the raucous crowd that could be heard pre-race had fallen deathly silent. Stunned by the manner with which the outsider had led from go to whoa and withstood all challengers, most had missed the obvious. Here was a horse that loved to lead and, if left to run at his own pace, an extremely tough horse that would be difficult to run down.
An upset in the Harvey Norman @mtcwagga Gold Cup thanks to a front running masterpiece from Mathew Cahill on the Trent @busuttin & Natalie Young trained Inverloch ($41), holding off dead heaters Spirit Ridge & Yonkers. @tabcomau pic.twitter.com/mEJWgKJwlp
— Racing NSW (@racing_nsw) May 7, 2021
The win was extremely special for his long-serving ownership group, as their journey with Inverloch has been a long and far winding one.
Purchased within a package of yearlings in 2015, this son of Fastnet Rock is out of Ideal, the half-sister to Champion 3yo Colt and successful sire Camelot. Dreams of owning a future stallion were alive, however he would not debut in France until midway through his three-year-old season. Wins from two of his first six starts provided evidence of a good quality racehorse, however dreams of a future stallion career had diminished.
Arriving in Australia at the end of his three-year-old European season, the decision to geld Inverloch was made, with the view that the horse could find an extra length or two in racetrack performance. Now a 7yo, that decision has been validated. For the same group of owners, he has since added a further seven wins and over $600,000 to his career prizemoney tally and continues to perform in high quality races every preparation.
Not only has Inverloch won the hearts of his connections, but he quickly won over his Australian trainers Trent Busuttin and Natalie Young. They have trained Inverloch since his Australian arrival and going into Friday’s race, their confidence, despite a firmer than hoped track, was that “he is as good as I have had him in a long time,” said Busuttin.
Post-race, the stable was euphoric. “What else can we say? We love this horse; he is an absolute legend,” said Natalie Young, “He is so tough; he got taken on early but got rolling about the 800 and started to break their hearts a long way out”.
Seasoned bush jockey Mathew Cahill rode the horse exactly the way he [Inverloch] wanted, as the fittest horse in the race, and that is what he proved to be.
“They took us on a little bit early, (but) from about the 1200m they backed off, and I got some nice cheap sectionals,” Cahill said.
“I upped the ante again from the 800 metres, but full credit to the horse, he just really knuckled down and tried his heart out right to the line.”
The owner experience will continue for a period to come, with it likely that Inverloch will next head to Queensland to start in the Premier’s Cup over 2400m before going to the Listed Ipswich Cup over 2150m.
“He is just a grand old horse,” Busuttin said. “Three years ago, we won a (benchmark) 78, 2000 at Swan Hill, and I thought that would be his go, but he just keeps on winning.”
Endeared as a legend at the stable and echoed by the owners, he is a horse that has been tough and honest, and in the words of one co-owner, “is just a horse that makes me smile”.
