Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
Ace reinsman Aiden De Campo was at his brilliant best when he produced a masterly drive to land the 30m co-backmarker Patched a narrow winner of the $50,000 Trotters Cup over 2503m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
And eight-year-old Patched, trained by David Young, became the first trotter in the 19-year history of this Group 2 event to win the race when he held on in a thrilling finish to beat Nickys Son ($14) by a head, with the $2.75 favourite Sunnys Little Rose a half-neck away in third place.
Patched, a $7.30 chance, began off 20m when Young and De Campo combined to win the Trotters Cup by two lengths from Chumani in February 2023, and he started off 40m when he finished third to Our Maestoso in last year’s Cup.
“Patched begins really quick from a stand,” said De Campo. “There was a fair bit going on (with Bee Bee Beroc galloping at the start, and Chumani and Elegant Peak being badly checked). I just found that moving line and kept punching through, and we got through to a great position early.
“Then the horse in the breeze (Dark Secret) wasn’t taking us up there, so I was happy to pop around (1300m from home).” Chris Lewis then was able to get Nickys Son to the one-out, one-back position, following Patched.
“Coming to the bell the leader (Uptown Lad) was near on done,” said De Campo. “I had Chris on my back and Junior (Hall) behind the leader, and from then on I was concentrating on those two.” De Campo simply refused to seriously challenge Uptown Lad. He made sure that he had Sunnys Little Rose in a tight pocket until he sent Patched to the front with about 250m to travel.
Nickys Son then ran home strongly, and Sunnys Little Rose was hampered for room in the home straight before finishing determinedly.
“I was quite confident going into the race, and I thought Patched got into the race really well off 30m,” said Young. “Last year he began off 40m and gave 30m to Our Maestoso, who is a top trotter, and was beaten by only five metres. It was a huge run, and on paper it was a stronger Cup last year.
“I felt I had Patched peaking at the right time. His work on Tuesday was perfect, and even on the hot days, like last Wednesday, he was running around and carrying on around his yard, which is not like him.”
Patched, who ended a losing sequence of nine, has raced 81 times for 22 wins, 30 placings and $241,309. He had 30 starts in Victoria for four wins and eleven placings before he arrived in WA early in 2022 when he won at his first two appearances, both in stands.
Young races Patched on lease from his owner Vicki Woodhouse, who purchased the trotter after he had recovered from laminitis (a painful hoof ailment), and he was trained by Mrs Woodhouse’s daughter Alison Alford, and driven in his Victorian races by Alison’s husband Chris.
Young trained Conquer All about twelve years ago when he won five races with the trotter, who had been driven by Alford before coming to WA. And it was this connection that led to Young receiving Patched to race in WA.