Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
Two-year-old pacer Advantage arrived in Western Australia five weeks ago, and he made a wonderful debut when he scored an impressive victory in the $20,250 Ora Foods Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
The gelding, prepared by leading trainers Greg and Skye Bond, was handled in fine style by Ryan Warwick, who was content to drive him conservatively from barrier two and relax behind the pacemaker Wanea before easing him off the pegs 500m from home.
Advantage, the $1.50 favourite, then took a narrow lead at the 300m before surging away in the final stages to win by 5m from $11 chance Your Grace, who ran on from fifth at the bell. The final 400m sections were covered in 28.8sec. and 29.6sec. and the winner rated 1.57.3.
Warwick said that he hoped that Advantage would improve with racing and become a candidate for the $150,000 Golden Slipper on September 30.
Advantage is by the American sire Hes Watching and is the ninth foal out of the New Zealand-bred Holmes Hanover mare Pascale Bromac, who earned $96,193 from six wins and nine placings from 44 starts.
Pascale Bromac won a Group 2 2000m Nevele R Stakes for two-year-old fillies in March 2003 before finishing third in a group 1 feature event at Alexandra Park two months later. Then, as a three-year-old she finished second in the Great Northern Oaks at Alexandra Park in December 2003.