Powerhouse trainers Ciaron Maher & David Eustace have a key contender for the Group 1 Flight Stakes in a fortnight with their class filly Tiz Invincible continuing her outstanding spring with a dominant 2023 Tea Rose Stakes win for the punters on Saturday.
2023 Tea Rose Stakes winner Tiz Invincible was huge saluting for the punters in the Flight Stakes lead-up. Photo: Steve Hart.
Coming off The Rosebud – Furious Stakes double this prep the progressive daughter of I Am Invincible made it three on the trot with a stylish victory in the Group 2 $300,000 Tea Rose Stakes (1400m).
Given a gun ride by apprentice Zac Lloyd in a turn of luck at the meeting for the young hoop, the winning filly was settled just off the pace fifth behind the previously undefeated leader Tropical Squall for Waterhouse & Bott.
After going a little keen early Tiz Invincible eventually dropped in before bolting home the closing stages.
Tropical Squall upped the ante at the top of the straight while Tiz Invincible ($3.20F) came for her along the fence.
Lloyd moved her off the inside squeezing through a tight gap to take the lead 150m out and power home for a big win over Gary Portelli’s Brave Smash filly Kimochi ($4) who had to settle for another placing after also running second in the Furious Stakes over 1200m.
“You can see she’s still coming in the coat,” co-trainer Ciaron Maher told Sky Thoroughbred Central post-win.
“She’s running better every time we go to the races.
“She’s relaxing a little bit better, Zac’s (Lloyd) beautiful ride, she had an even more explosive turn of foot today.
“She couldn’t be any more exciting really.
“She’s always shown us plenty and I think she’s got so much in front of her.
“I suppose she’s doing what she’s doing now, but even still she’s got so much developing to do.
“I think there’s a hell of a lot in front of her.”
Doing well to hold on for third and complete the Tea Rose Stakes trifecta was the pace-maker Tropical Squall ($5.50).
Tiz Invincible is now the all-in $3 favourite in 2023 Flight Stakes betting for the Group 1 over 1600m on Epsom Handicap Day on September 30.
Zougotcha (2022) achieved the double last year and now Tiz Invincible looks pretty hard to beat stepping-up in distance having gone from strength-to-strength this campaign.
“It was a bit of a test today, up to the 1400 metres to get her to relax,” Maher said.
“She had been a little bit keen in the middle stages, but she relaxed beautifully and I’m really looking forward to the Flight now.”
Click here for the full pre-field Flight Stakes 2023 betting markets courtesy of Ladbrokes.com.au.
2023 Tea Rose Stakes Results & Finishing Order
| Finish | No. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Bar. | Weight | Penalty | Starting Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | TIZ INVINCIBLE | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | Zac Lloyd (a) | 2 | 56kg | $3.20F | |||
| 2 | 3 | KIMOCHI | Gary Portelli | Jason Collett | 1.35L | 5 | 56kg | $4 | ||
| 3 | 8 | TROPICAL SQUALL | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Adam Hyeronimus | 2.04L | 12 | 56kg | $5.50 | ||
| 4 | 10 | FRENCH ENDEAVOUR | Matthew Smith | Dylan Gibbons (a) | 3.1L | 14 | 56kg | $31 | ||
| 5 | 14 | SUMMER LOVING | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Ms Rachel King | 3.33L | 8 | 56kg | $17 | ||
| 6 | 15 | PRIVATE LEGACY | Gregory Hickman | Tyler Schiller | 4.01L | 3 | 56kg | $91 | ||
| 7 | 11 | TUTTA LA VITA | Chris Waller | Kerrin McEvoy | 4.16L | 13 | 56kg | $41 | ||
| 8 | 2 | AUTUMN BALLET | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Sam Clipperton | 4.23L | 10 | 56kg | $14 | ||
| 9 | 13 | MUMBAI MUSE | Michael Freedman | Brett Prebble | 4.8L | 4 | 56kg | $14 | ||
| 10 | 12 | UNIQUE AMBITION (NZ) | John Sargent | Chad Schofield | 5.19L | 9 | 56kg | $26 | ||
| 11 | 7 | AUGUST BLOOM | Peter & Paul Snowden | Tom Sherry | 5.82L | 7 | 56kg | $21 | ||
| 12 | 9 | CAPTAIN AMELIA | John O’Shea | Joshua Parr | 6.22L | 16 | 56kg | $101 | ||
| 13 | 4 | MISS JOELENE | Kelly Schweida | Kyle Wilson-Taylor | 7.18L | 11 | 56kg | $51 | ||
| 14 | 6 | ZARDOZI | James Cummings | Jean Van Overmeire | 13.42L | 1 | 56kg | $31 | ||
| 15 | 5 | PLATINUM JUBILEE | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Regan Bayliss | 14.61L | 15 | 56kg | $31 | ||
| 16 | 16 | NANTUCKET ISLAND | Edward Cummings | Brock Ryan | 14.65L | 6 | 56kg | $201 |
Table Credit: Racing Australia.
