By Michael Guerin
Brian Hancock must set his standards pretty high because winning the Interdominion Grand Final last night was not the highlight of his week.
Hancock confirmed his title as the King Of The Interdoms with a gutsy drive on Sir Vancelot, who won a brief early speed duel before outsprinting the Kiwis at Alexandra Park, continuing the Australian domination of the transtasman series.
Given an easy time in the middle stages, Sir Vancelot kicked clear at the top of the straight to down favourite Iraklis, who had trailed him throughout, with Bogan Fella a fighting third in a race not run to suit his staying style.
For Sir Vancelot it was no ordinary Grand Final win. It completed a three-peat, a feat which may never be accomplished again.
While that was the reason for Hancock's jubilant whip salute to the crowd as he hit the line, he was adamant his greatest thrill of this carnival came before last night.
"Winning this is great but this carnival was special for me before we won," said Hancock.
"The main reason I came here was because my old friend Roy Purdon told me the horse would handle the right-handed track all right.
"When a man like Roy tells you to come, you don't argue."
Hancock reveres Purdon, the training legend, and like most of the racing industry was a worried man when Purdon entered hospital for heart surgery just six weeks ago.
"But to come over here and spend time with Roy was something I won't forget.
"That is even more special to me than winning. He is a great trainer and I'll be honest, I idolise the man."
Last night's victory in the $400,000 holy grail of harness racing was Hancock's sixth Grand Final success but his first major win in New Zealand, where, before last week, he had never tasted success.
It also makes Sir Vancelot the richest standardbred to have raced in Australasia, with earnings just short of $2.2 million.
He now stands to make much more than that as a stallion, but while the champion has nothing left to prove Hancock has not ruled out returning to racing next season and a shot at an unbelievable fourth Grand Final win.
"I am not sure what we will do now. I am not ruling anything out with him yet because how can you. He just keeps producing the goods for me."
Sir Vancelot's home stretch kick left no room for excuses from Iraklis, whose driver Ricky May knew he was in trouble when Sir Vancelot was allowed to crawl through the middle stages.
Ironically Sir Vancelot and Hancock nearly missed last night's victory after being denied racing room in their final heat and only just scraping into the race.
After last night, anything else might have seemed an injustice.
Sir Vancelot supreme in three-peat
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.