The Breeders’ Crown is at De Lovely’s mercy after her stunning Australian Oaks win last Friday night.  Geoff Small’s latest glamour filly showed Australians what all the hype was about when she brilliantly won the Group 1 Oaks at Melton’s Tabcorp Park.  Sadly for the race, Australia’s top filly Millwood Meg broke stride for no reason soon after the start and lost all chance.

In contrast, driver David Butcher settled De Lovely into a cosy midfield position while Queensland Oaks runner-up Torque In Motion dictated in the lead.  In what developed into a 1200m sprint home, De Lovely was clocked to run that section in an unthinkable 1.23.6, capped by a closing 800m of 55. The daughter of Falcon Seelster looked to have something in reserve as she beat Torque In Motion by 4.3m, with another 12.4m away to Miss Trickin Lombo in third spot. The mile rate for the 2240m was a slick 1.57.5.  Butcher didn’t hesitate to rate De Lovely alongside the best fillies he’s driven, including her mother Copper Beach and Lauraella.
“I’d don’t like to split them, but this filly is very, very good,” he said.

“Geoff’s liked her right from the start, but it’s really in the last couple of months that she’s gone to another level.  “That’s not surprising, because she’s actually bred to Northern Hemisphere time.”  De Lovely beat her rivals with sustained speed and power at Melton, but Butcher said her sheer speed was awesome.  “I drove her with a sit at Alexandra Park in a race and she came four-wide around them and ran a 26.5 last quarter,” he said.

Small switched straight into Breeders’ Crown mode after the Oaks presentation.  In a surprise move, the trainer confirmed De Lovely was headed straight back to Auckland despite the Crown Semi-Finals being run at Melton on August 13.  “She’ll run in a Crown Heat at Cambridge this week,” he said.  “It’s an extra expense for the owners, but it’s the best thing for the filly.
“She won’t have a hard run in the Heat. It could even be a walkover, and then I can prepare her for the semis at home.

“There’s a flight back to Melbourne on the 11th (of August), which is the same timing we tried for this race – arriving the Wednesday night before a Friday night race.”  The Crown should actually be easier than the Oaks for De Lovely, with Millwood Meg not eligible and going for a spell.  The former Kiwi filly heads to the spelling paddock after a fantastic season for trainer Greg Bond which netted her 11 wins, including the WA, Queensland and Gold Coast Oaks.