Exciting colt Exceedance might have finished third at Rosehill on Saturday, but he gained plenty of plaudits setting some stunning finishing fractions that led jockey Tommy Berry to describe the son of Exceed And Excel as “one of the nicest young horses I’ve ridden in my career.”
Owned by a consortium of high profile owners, including Phoenix Thoroughbreds, and running in the Green and White silks of Vinery Berry had the colt nearly ten lengths off leader Splintex as the field turn for home before the pair rocketed home to go down in a photo finish. Figures from NSW Punters Intelligence for the the Southern Cross Two-year-old Turf Handicap show just how fast the Hawkes Racing runner got home with the clock stopped at 32.21 for the closing 600m and 10.63 over the final furlong.
NOW THAT WAS A RACE – Splintex wins and Exceedance flys home in the first @rosehillgardens @atc_races today. pic.twitter.com/pxOiN57l2E
— Sky Racing (@SkyRacingAU) June 1, 2019
Berry said of the run “It’s scary how good this horse is. They ran home in 33.9 (seconds for the last 600m), and he was able to let down like he did.
“He is one of the nicest young horses I’ve ridden in my career, and I just speak highly enough of him. He is a green animal. He quickened at the 400m, again at the 300, 200, again at the 100, there is just no bottom to him. He pulled up and trotted in like he just went for a trot around the ring. He could be anything.”
The colt was looking to follow up his debut win at Wyong where he produced a similar turn of foot to come from last to first but despite not being able to bride the gap this time connections will be unbowed in their high opinion of him after his latest effort. The Hawkes racing team indicated the colt will now head to the paddock before coming back for his three-year-old campaign.