Amy and Ash Yargi celebrated their biggest win as a training team after Rebel Racer’s upset win in Monday’s $300,000 Group 2 Adelaide Cup at Morphettville.
The husband-and-wife combination enjoyed their maiden Black Type success when the six-year-old son of Rebel Raider scored a fighting win in the 3200-metre event.
It was just his third start since being transferred from the Mark and Levi Kavanagh stable after the Yargis paid $35,000 for him via Inglis Digital with a view to a jumps career.
“I can’t believe that just happened,” Amy said.
“I bought him to win a maiden hurdle at Warrnambool, I’m not even joking.
“I was nearly going to stop at $30,000 but I went one more because I wanted him, I thought he was a beautiful horse, and I’m bloody glad I did.”
Rebel Racer ($26) turned in a tenacious front-running performance to rally after being headed before the turn and score a neck win over Aurora’s Symphony ($12) with Amade ($9) a length away third.
Despite looking beaten when headed, first by Persan and then Amade, before straightening, Rebel Racer staved off the challenge by that pair under the urgings of Craig Newitt before again rallying after being headed by Aurora’s Symphony midway down the straight.
“I was in a spot where I had to make them carry their weight a bit, so with only 53 (kilos) on his back I was able to crank it up a fair way out,” Newitt said.
“She was last-man-standing and even when Symon Wilde’s horse (Aurora’s Symphony) drew level with me I knew I’d be strong late, it was just whether he had too much class, but my big fella’s engine just kept ticking over.”
Rebel Racer has now won five of 31 starts and might have delayed his jumping career, but Yargi is convinced the preparations for it played a role in his Adelaide Cup win.
“We’ve schooled him a few times and I think that’s probably been the turning point with him too, because he’s actually really ungenuine when we were schooling him and I think that’s been the key to turning his form around,” she said.