THE Autumn carnival is over but celebrations continue for Vinery’s super sire More Than Ready and his biggest fan, leading trainer Gai Waterhouse.
With the dust barely settled in the wake of More Joyous’ heroic Doncaster triumph, Gai, Nash, Singo and More Joyous teamed up again with More Strawberries to win the feature 2012 Darley Crown (1300m) at Hawkesbury’s stand alone Saturday meeting.
Now aged four, this one time Golden Slipper placegetter burst back in to the winner’s stall recording her fourth career win (alongside the Group 2 Tea Rose and Furious Stakes) to take her earnings to over $840,000.
More Strawberries stunning return to form was in contrast to her last effort, an uncustomary first-up seventh in the Group 2 ATC Sapphire Stakes (1200m) behind Atlantic Jewel.
“I didn’t know what to make of her run at Randwick,” Waterhouse told the Sunday Telegraph’s Ray Thomas.
“We had the mare checked over and we could find nothing wrong with her.
“She has continued to work brilliantly and it was just a matter of changing a few things, mixing up her routine a little and hoping it would produce a return to form.
“That was the real More Strawberries today.”
Waterhouse declared that More Strawberries will back up in the Dark Jewel Classic at Scone in a two weeks time before heading north to take part in the Brisbane Winter carnival.
“We will aim her at the Tattersall’s Tiara and try and win a Group 1 race with the mare,” she said.
