It was one of her best. That's how Auckland trainer Stephen McKee rated Sunline's win in the $A200,000 ($264,500) Manikato Stakes in Melbourne.
"You would have to say so," McKee said yesterday.
"She had them beaten a long way out."
It was the champion mare's first start of a new campaign but even McKee was pleasantly surprised at the ease in which she strode to a 3-1/4 length win in the group one event at Moonee Valley on Saturday.
"She was probably entitled to be under a little bit of pressure from the good sprinters," he said.
"Even our group one specialist sprinters find it hard to match the Aussie sprinters."
McKee said the most amazing factor was she accomplished the win on a preparation short of serious fast work.
"We have only really given her one good hit-out here and we were perhaps shooting in the dark a little bit.
"We thought she may have needed the run a bit - might have knocked up that last 100 metres.
"But she has done a great job. She just seems to keep getting better."
Sunline strode to the lead on the home turn and it was obvious her rivals were struggling in her wake.
"It was just like a trial to her. She couldn't have been any more impressive, could she?"
It was Sunline's 18th win from 25 starts and her stake earnings now stand at $A4.83 million. She is already New Zealand's greatest stakes winner and the biggest stake-winning mare trained in the Southern Hemisphere.
The Desert Sun five-year-old is clearly on target to become the biggest stakes winning horse in Australasia.
She currently lies fifth on the table behind Might And Power ($A5.22 million), Tie The Knot ($A5.38 million), Super Impose ($A5.65 million) and Octagonal ($A5.89 million).
McKee said it would be the middle of this week before it was decided what would be Sunline's next start on her campaign geared towards the $A2 million Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley on October 28. Sunline is looking for two in a row in the Cox Plate.
He said there were three options, all of which were group two weight-for-age races. They were the $A200,000 Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on September 3, the $A250,000 Craiglee Stakes (1600m) at Flemington on September 9 and the $A200,000 Feehan Stakes (1600m) at Moonee Valley on September 16.
"Were not quite sure how many runs we are going to give her before the Cox Plate - it's all a bit far away at this stage," McKee said.
"But looking at how quickly she has come to form, there's no reason to be racing around too often."
Saturday's win kept intact three unbeaten records for Sunline. She has won each of five first-up starts, all five starts over 1200m and her three starts at the Moonee Valley track. Included among the Moonee Valley wins is last year's Cox Plate.
Former New Zealand Greg Childs lauded more praise on Sunline after riding her on Saturday.
"I have ridden some very, very good horses but never a champion like this mare," Childs said.
"Coming into today without a run back home in New Zealand, question marks could have been raised.
"But she raced out and absorbed the pressure and then she just raced away to win easily.
"It's nice to come back and win first-up because the competition, particularly with the overseas horses, will just get tougher."
Sunline was on Friday crowned New Zealand Horse of the Year for the second consecutive year. It was the first time the title had been won twice in a row.
She is line to complete a transtasman double on Thursday night when the Australian Horse of the Year is named in Melbourne.
Only one other horse has won both titles in the same year. That was Veandercross in the 1992-93 season.
- NZPA
Racing: Champion Kiwi mare sublime in cruising to Manikato win
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