Ken Casellas | Photo: PACEPIX
Widely travelled four-year-old pacer My Ultimate Baxter was close to death when he became ill on a float trip across the Nullarbor earlier in the year.
But he has survived, and he notched his first win at his fifth start in Western Australia when Chris Lewis drove him to victory in the Cowden Insurance Pace at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
“His first few runs here have been below what he can do,” said Lewis. “He has had a rough start. On his trip here from Sydney he was affected by travel sickness, and it was touch and go for a while whether he would survive.
“This type of gut problem is often fatal. He stopped in Kalgoorlie for three days where he responded to treatment, and when he arrived at our stables, he got more treatment. He still wanted to eat and drink, and it was that attitude which helped him to survive.”
My Ultimate Baxter is trained by Lewis’s wife Debra, and he was second favourite at $3.10 on Friday night when he was awkwardly drawn out wide at barrier seven.
Dardy Boy, the $2.60 favourite from barrier three, set the pace while Lewis wisely restrained My Ultimate Baxter, who settled down in ninth position.
Lewis then sent My Ultimate Baxter forward with a three-wide burst 550m after the start and the gelding moved to the breeze 1200m from home. He took a narrow lead approaching the home turn and fought on gamely to win by a head from $15 chance Name In Lights, with Dardy Boy a close-up third. The final quarters were run in 28.2sec. and 29.2sec. and the winner rated 1.57.9 over the 2130m.
“My Ultimate Baxter has good gate speed, but I didn’t want to use it tonight, with enough pace on the inside without me having to go forward,” said Lewis. “And it’s probably not his go, breezing. But he won nicely.
“We will see how he progresses to see whether he will be able to run in the feature events for four-year-olds in the next couple of months.”
My Ultimate Baxter has raced 25 times for ten wins, five placings and $98,617. His wins included the Group 2 Simpson Memorial at Menangle in January 2022. He raced six time in Queensland for five wins, eleven times in New South Wales for four wins, three times for one placing in Victoria and five times in WA for one win and a third placing.