Fergusons' gamble pays off with Group 1 win at Alexandra Park

By Michael Guerin

It was one of the most perfectly executed plans of the harness racing year.

But the really exciting part about Apollo Eleven’s win in the $100,000 IRT Young Guns Easton Light at Alexandra Park on Friday night is it may just be the start for both horse and trainers.

The colt son of Bold Eagle gave trainers Dylan and Jo Ferguson their first Group 1 success with Dylan’s father Peter in the sulky and mother Wendy in a large ownership group that includes galloping stars Craig Grylls and Robbie Patterson.

He was perfect in front while others weren’t but bottom line is he made it three wins from four to start his career and favourite Duke of Bourbon trotted all the way and still couldn’t get him.

The win is the culmination of a decision Dylan and Jo made heading into the Karaka yearling sales last year that they were going to put their stake in the ground and make a splash.

“We bought him for $90,000 and also Elle Diamond for $60,000 at the same sale and to be honest we really couldn’t afford that,” said Jo Ferguson.

“But we wanted to show people we are serious about being competitive in the best races.

“And were lucky because while we have had support from so many people right at the start Richard Cole said to us he’d take a third of him.

“That gave us the confidence to go after him and without that we probably wouldn’t have got him.

“It is so hard to believe we managed to do it and we have so many people to thank.”

The Fergusons are training 24 horses at present and the business is helped by pre-training and breaking in of Robert Dunn’s northern yearlings along with the likes of Chris and Tina Barlow and even Yabby Dam Farms sending them horses this season.

Now the brave gamble of last season has paid such a lucrative dividend Jo says the team will try again and hope Apollo Eleven helps build stable momentum, so important for a young couple just in their 30s.

“We actually went back to Karaka this year and went again, and we missed some and got some others, but the whole idea of this has been to launch that next phase of our career.

“This horse has done that and I can tell you, I was bloody screaming coming down the home straight.”

Jo’s voice will get some time to recover as Apollo Eleven is heading to the paddock and just in time as he has had an intense preparation for a two-year-old trotter.

“He is ready for a break but we are so excited about what h can do in the future for us and the owners.”

For all the size of the ownership group though the win was especially popular as Jo does so much to promote and celebrate the success of others in northern harness racing, through her on track and media work.

Just an hour later it was another son of Bold Eagle who took out the next trotting Group 1 when Kyvalley Ray bolted away with the Breckon Farms Trotting Derby.

The hot favourite was given plenty of time to find his feet by Blair Orange and never looked in any danger as he raced clear to complete a clean sweep of the Alexandra Park major three-year-old trots for the autumn.

Petite Amour battled bravely for second and Somebody is now a Group 1 placegetter after trotting when plenty of others didn’t, including second favourite Kawatiri Trev who galloped down the back straight when in the trail.

“It has been great to be over here the last two Friday nights accepting the kudos when he wins,” joked trainer Brent Lilley, acknowledging that Hayden and Amanda Cullen have done the caretaker training with Kyvalley Ray.

Kyvalley Ray heads back to Victoria this weekend and will be set for the Victoria Derby and then return for New Zealand Cup week and the NZ Trotting Derby after that.