Aaron Bullock notched up a half century of winners for the current season when he landed a treble at Saturday’s Newcastle race meeting. Two winning rides at Dubbo on Friday and another three at Newcastle has seen Bullock’s 2019-2020 season tally soar to 52, only two months and five days into the season. He only had five mounts on Saturday and his first runner was the Paul Perry trained Nothing Too Hard in the 1870 metre Benchmark 64 Handicap. A huge drifter with bookmakers, the five-year-old went to the barrier as a $12 chance. A good tempo up front allowed Nothing Too Hard to settle midfield and he started to unwind at the top of the straight.
Robert Thompson pinched a break on the Port Macquarie galloper The Kroc 200 metres out and he looked to have the race at his mercy, however Nothing Too Hard kept coming and nailed The Kroc on the post. Bullock was again in the winners stall two races later when the heavily backed colt Pandano brought up a double for the jockey and trainer Perry. The race was a 1200 metre Benchmark 64 Handicap and Bullock rode the winner a little quieter than usual.
The $2.30 favourite claimed the speedy Hildalgo in the closing stages and Pandano drew away to win by three-quarters of a length.
Bullock completed his treble on the shortest priced favourite on the day Oakfield Twilight in the 1300 metre Benchmark 70 Handicap. Backed into $1.85 Oakfield Twilight was given a gun run and held off the fast finish of Kris Less Kedah to win by half a length.
It was a huge drop in class for the winner which led to the 100-metre point in the Group 3 Cameron Handicap on September 20. Bullock spoke about his trio of winners, “I was keen on Nothing Too Hard. They walked in his first up run at Muswellbrook and that didn’t suit him. The step up to 1870 and a genuine tempo was the key today and he was good.
I wanted to ride Pandano off the speed today and the plan worked. He had blinkers on for the first time and that was a huge positive. He really knuckled down in the straight. I told Oakfield Twilight’s owner Bruce Mackenzie that I planned to take a sit today. We did that and when we popped off the fence near the turn, he was never going to be beaten. He is a genuine city class horse.
Two seasons back I rode 107 winners and set myself a target to better that this season, so far so good,” Bullock said.
Newcastle apprentice Louise Day steered Deelbraka to the easiest win of the meeting in the 1600 metre Maiden Plate. Deelbraka had a frustrating record of seven seconds from eleven starts prior to Saturday. The four-year-old raced away to win by 5.3 lengths.
The winner is trained by Victorian’s Ciaron Maher and David Eustace who have a stable at Warwick Farm. When Day arrived in Australia she worked for Maher before securing an apprenticeship with Kris Lees.
Aaron Bullock notched up a half century of winners for the current season when he landed a treble at Saturday’s Newcastle race meeting. Two winning rides at Dubbo on Friday and another three at Newcastle has seen Bullock’s 2019-2020 season tally soar to 52, only two months and five days into the season. He only had five mounts on Saturday and his first runner was the Paul Perry trained Nothing Too Hard in the 1870 metre Benchmark 64 Handicap. A huge drifter with bookmakers, the five-year-old went to the barrier as a $12 chance. A good tempo up front allowed Nothing Too Hard to settle midfield and he started to unwind at the top of the straight.
Robert Thompson pinched a break on the Port Macquarie galloper The Kroc 200 metres out and he looked to have the race at his mercy, however Nothing Too Hard kept coming and nailed The Kroc on the post. Bullock was again in the winners stall two races later when the heavily backed colt Pandano brought up a double for the jockey and trainer Perry. The race was a 1200 metre Benchmark 64 Handicap and Bullock rode the winner a little quieter than usual.
The $2.30 favourite claimed the speedy Hildalgo in the closing stages and Pandano drew away to win by three-quarters of a length.
Bullock completed his treble on the shortest priced favourite on the day Oakfield Twilight in the 1300 metre Benchmark 70 Handicap. Backed into $1.85 Oakfield Twilight was given a gun run and held off the fast finish of Kris Less Kedah to win by half a length.
It was a huge drop in class for the winner which led to the 100-metre point in the Group 3 Cameron Handicap on September 20. Bullock spoke about his trio of winners, “I was keen on Nothing Too Hard. They walked in his first up run at Muswellbrook and that didn’t suit him. The step up to 1870 and a genuine tempo was the key today and he was good.
I wanted to ride Pandano off the speed today and the plan worked. He had blinkers on for the first time and that was a huge positive. He really knuckled down in the straight. I told Oakfield Twilight’s owner Bruce Mackenzie that I planned to take a sit today. We did that and when we popped off the fence near the turn, he was never going to be beaten. He is a genuine city class horse.
Two seasons back I rode 107 winners and set myself a target to better that this season, so far so good,” Bullock said.
Newcastle apprentice Louise Day steered Deelbraka to the easiest win of the meeting in the 1600 metre Maiden Plate. Deelbraka had a frustrating record of seven seconds from eleven starts prior to Saturday. The four-year-old raced away to win by 5.3 lengths.
The winner is trained by Victorian’s Ciaron Maher and David Eustace who have a stable at Warwick Farm. When Day arrived in Australia she worked for Maher before securing an apprenticeship with Kris Lees.