KEY POINTS:
Victorian trainer David Hayes' warhorse Niconero won his second Kingston Town Classic and third group one race when he scored a dominant victory in the weight-for-age feature at Ascot, Perth, on Saturday.
It was the 7-year-old's 11th win from 50 starts and the winning stake of A$300,000 lifted his career earnings well past A$2 million.
Jockey Brad Rawiller won his first group one race when Niconero was successful in the Kingston Town (1800m) in 2006 and again rode a copybook race on the Danzero gelding.
Rawiller has since risen to national prominence as the regular partner of superstar Weekend Hussler.
Niconero jumped well from his wide barrier (14) and Rawiller elected to ease him back in the field as is his usual racing pattern.
He raced three wide, but with cover, as Mission Control set a steady tempo up front.
Rawiller was content to bide his time on Niconero who was still midfield at the halfway mark but improved to be poised to strike on turning for home.
Once Rawiller gave the $5 favourite his head Niconero bounded clear and had too much in the tank for his opposition, cruising to the line 1 lengths clear of last-start Railway Stakes winner Gilded Venom ($7.50).
Jim Cassidy, who was striving for his 100th Group One win, gave the Tracey Bartley-trained Sniper's Bullet ($6) every possible chance but the 5-year-old had to settle for third, a half-length behind Gilded Venom.
Niconero, whose other group one success was in the Futurity Stakes (1600m) at Caulfield in March, put the writing on the wall with his fast-finishing fourth to Gilded Venom in the Railway two weeks ago.
The win completed a big week for Hayes after he had announced plans to reduce his racehorse numbers and transform his 1100-acre (440ha) property at Euroa, in country Victoria, into his major training establishment.
However, the seven-time Melbourne premier trainer said the famous Lindsay Park establishment at Angaston in South Australia would continue to operate on a different level.
Angaston would, in effect, swap roles with Euroa, which for the past seven years had been used to break in yearling crops and to freshen-up horses sent there from Melbourne. "The South Australian racing programme will continue to play a pivotal role in the assessment and nurturing of our racing team," Hayes said.
His main raceday concentration would be in Melbourne and Sydney. "Being better placed to target Sydney racing excites me," he said. "The planned infrastructure will see a significant reduction in raceday runners as we will not be catering for the number of horses previously trained."
The facilities at Euroa will be boosted by the addition of two artificial training tracks and state-of-the-art veterinary and exercise facilities featuring galloping and water treadmills.
- AAP