Betterzippit takes out Thames Pacers Cup
While a lot of the focus was on Addington yesterday as Cup and Show wrapped up, Sean McCaffrey made his mark at Cambridge last night with a winning double, and the Graeme Rogerson-Dylan Ferguson barn chimed in with a training treble.
McCaffrey trained and drove Betterzipit to win the night's feature pace, the Thames Pacers Cup Handicap pace, after earlier winning with Jasinova as part of a Luk Chin-trained trifecta in the Barrett Homes - The Helm Handicap Trot.
"I don't know why he gave me that drive," McCaffrey told Track Chat's Jo Stevens, "it was a certainty."
Jasinova headed home Safrakova and Alana to register her eighth win in 54 starts.
While Jasinova's performance was not unexpected Betterzippitt was at double figures odds in the Thames Pacers Cup.
The four-year-old son of Betterthancheddar went straight to the lead and never surrended it. The highly-rated Hey Bartender sat parked over the concluding stages and stuck on well for third, with Village Rebel launching a spirited bid on the passing lane to nab second.
Backmarker and favourite Hot And Treacherous (off 45m) was making a bid around the home turn but got impeded and had no chance of making ground on the leaders.
"He's been unlucky of late, being caught on the fence," McCaffrey said of Betterzippit, "so I was going to the front and not handing up."
The tactics worked a treat, with Betterzippit winning his fifth race in 24 starts.
"He's never gone a bad race ...he loves competing and doesn't give in," he told Stevens.
Another of McCaffrey's better performers Con Grazia Love finished second in the Thames Trotters Cup and will head to Addington for the Group 1 New Zealand Trotting Oaks later this month.
The Love You filly stormed home but had no chance of overhauling Funny Face who circled the field from a 20m backmark to take the lead, then the trail behind Sacred Mountain.
Turning for home Peter Ferguson let the four-year-old mare go and she went on to record win number seven by two lengths.
Funny Face's victory was part of a winning treble for trainers Graeme Rogerson and Dylan Ferguson. Their other winners were Wicked Wanda and Loutenant.
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