Lightly raced five-year-old Captaintreacherous mare Reely Nauti proved too good for her rivals when first up from a spell in the Morey’s Sports & Music Tours Pace (2090m) in Hobart on Sunday night.
The Paul Hill-trained pacer had been out of the winner’s list since November 2023, with connections electing on a four-start campaign last season in her own age group given her high national rating after a successful two and three-year-old campaign where she won five races.
On Sunday, Hall of Fame reinsman Ricky Duggan took the $2.30 favourite straight to the lead, where they controlled the race before dashing home in a 56.5s last half mile, with the mile rate recorded in 1:59.6s.
She scored by 5.5m over Killarney Dance ($12), with The Chancer ($2.60) a further 3.8m away third.
“I thought she would run well. She trialled well the week before, and I thought if she ran up to that, she wouldn’t be far away,” said Hill about the win.
“It was a nice race for her with the mare’s concession. She got off the front, and she is a 77-rater now, and there aren’t too many races where you can place her.
The trainer will now aim the pacer towards the state’s premier mares race, the George Johnson, on 22 March, with heats to be held on the 7th and 16th of that month.
“The George Johnson will be her main aim. She may have one run before the heats, but I think in the long run, she may be better off going away. There are a lot of mares races on the mainland, especially at Menangle, where you can place them a bit better.
Her dam, El Jays Magic, ended her racing career interstate, including a 1:53.2s win at Menangle.
“I think she could run a slippery mile at Menangle, but we will just see how she goes, get through the George Johnson and give her a chance and then work it out from there,” Hill explained.
