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There’s an art to a front-running ride in a staying race and it was on full display when Winona Costin guided Les Vampires to a crushing win in the Gosford Cup over the 2100m.

A mid-race move by a rival could have potentially brought them unstuck but it’s likely the move happened a touch too late as Costin was just starting to edge the tempo up.

Punter’s Intelligence sectional data showed how Les Vampires took control early in the race, crossing to the front by the winning post the first time, running the first 500m in 31.48.

While that was faster than the 2100m benchmark race earlier, they ran 32.33 or almost six lengths slower, the brakes went on and by the 1200m they were level pegging.

So Costin was able to have a picnic up front once she’d established the lead. Les Vampires ran 13.40 from 1600m-1400m then 13.86 from the 1400m-1200m and 13.31 from the 1200m-1000m.

This was about the point that Touristic started a move from near the tail running 12.83 for the 1000m-800m, 11.82 (800m-600m) and 11.68 (600m-400m).

He worked about half a length ahead of Les Vampires but Costin countered the move by getting the gelding to sprint having run 12.97 from the 800m-600m but an 11.53 from the 600m-400m. From there he was able to sustain the next 200m split in 11.52 and it was game over.

He’s run the second fastest last 600m of the race in 34.86 and while that was two lengths slower than the race’s best Etna Rosso (34.50) he’d simply been too well judged up front and, importantly, able to sprint on a dime.

Know Thyself’s win in The Coast came via another well executed ride, by Ash Morgan, as he sat outside the speed and proved too strong over the mile.

It’s not like they walked in the $500,000 feature, the first 800m of 50.22 was some four lengths faster than the Benchmark 72 earlier which ran 50.93 and on overall time was more than seven lengths slower.

He did his work early running 11.76 from the 1400m-1200m to establish his position and didn’t allow the leader Townsend to get it too easily. While his last 600m of 35.87 was only the sixth fastest his last 200m of 12.13 was only a length slower than the race’s best and he was as strong as anything on the line.

As she often does, Mare Of Mt Buller attacked the line hard from the back and she ran 35.09 and 11.97 for the fastest last 600m and 200m of the race.

The fact that Benchmark 72 was so slowly run highlights the effort of Hurstville Zagreb who was narrowly beaten to get so close after coming from well off them.

When the speed slackened considerably from the middle stages the field bunched and he made his run with the winner Enter The Dragon who was about a length and a half ahead of him.

He’s run the fastest last 600m of the race in 35.48 and covered 3m more than the winner. Given he was coming off a break due to a setback he can only be better for the run and it shouldn’t take him long to atone at this level at least.

Worth noting the fastest last 200m was run by Last Command, who dashed home in 11.63 after being left flat footed when they sprinted.

It’s fairly common for Chris Waller to produce a promising two-year-old or two around this time of year he might have unearthed a couple of them in High Achievement and Sarapo who ran one-two in the juvenile event.

The overall time was comparable to the Takeover Target Stakes at Listed level for older horses so it’s a good sign for their future. Note: full sectionals for the Takeover Target were not available.

High Achievement had the benefit of a run and was able to stalk the speed, running home in 35.26 for his last 600m but Sarapo bettered that. He’s run 35.04 and each of his final three sections were the race’s quickest.

Winning Proposal may have been one of the hard luck stories of the day, she went up in the air at the start of the Thunder Thousand (1000m) and lost any tactical advantage she may have had.

She’s run home into third in 33.70 for her last 600m and covered more ground than any horse in the race, an extra 10.1m.

To the eye she was strongest late in the run but the sectionals highlighted Miss Jennifer, who was dragged out to last from a wide gate before running 33.48 for her last 600m into fourth. The fastest of the day.

Her last 200m of 11.40 may have been quicker too had she not been slightly held up in the straight.

Fastest last 600m: Miss Jennifer 33.48.

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