Widely-travelled pacer Saifa emerged as a strong contender for the rich feature events for four-year-olds later in the year when he surged home from tenth at the bell to win the $50,000 Binshaw Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
At his second appearance in Western Australia for astute Bunbury trainer Bob Mellsop, Saifa was a $18.60 chance from out wide at barrier seven with Deni Roberts quite happy to allow him to avoid the early speed battles and restrain him to the rear.
Polemarker Lincoln Lou, the $1.28 favourite, had to withstand a strong early challenge from $51 outsider Mr Fantastic, and the lead time was a fast 35.8sec.
After solid opening quarters of 30.2sec. and 28.8sec., Roberts made her move, sending Saifa forward, three wide, 600m from home. The third 400m section was covered in 28.7sec. and $31 chance Soho Moonraker came from eighth at the bell to take the lead with 220m to travel.
However, Soho Moonraker was swamped in the closing stages, with Saifa finishing powerfully, taking the lead 50m from the post and winning by a half-length from Im Lightning Banner ($26), with $101 outsider Louie Dior coming from 11TH at the bell to be third, out five wide on the track.
Lincoln Lou wilted to finish 11TH and later was disqualified after hanging in under pressure and racing inside the marker pegs in the home straight. Three-year-old Lincoln Lou, the youngest runner in the race, found the rise in class too difficult an assignment, with reinsman Gary Hall jnr explaining: “it was just too hard for a three-year-old not used to that style of racing, burning out of the gate and then being kept honest by Mr Fantastic.”
Saifa has certainly had an interesting start to his career which now stands at 21 starts for seven wins, seven placings and $90,829. He was bred in New Zealand where he raced twice for a last-stride victory by a half-head after racing without cover in a 2000m event on the grass track at Tauherenika, and a third placing.
From there Saifa has raced in Queensland (five starts for a win and one placing), New South Wales (five starts for three wins and one placing), South Australia (one start for a second) and Victoria (six starts for a win and two placings) before arriving in WA.
“My spy found him for me in Victoria,” said Mellsop, who has given the Art Major gelding two starts for a close second to Cams Boulder and Friday night’s victory.
“We bought him from Andy Gath (after his wife Kate had driven him to a strong-finishing win by a head at a 1.55.2 rate over 1720m at Melton on June 7 this year).
“And now Saifa is syndicated to a lot of people who have been with me for a long time, and Deni has also been with me for a long time and is getting close to driving a hundred winners for me.”
Roberts, who is the No. 1 driver for the powerful Greg and Skye Bond stable, said: “Bob put me on as a junior early on, and we have formed a good relationship.”
Saifa is the second foal out of Bettors Delight mare Lovetodream, who raced 34 times for eight wins, 13 placings and $73,125. Lovetodream’s younger full-brother Gran Chico had 39 starts for nine wins, eleven placings and $149,675, with his final 26 starts being in WA between 2019 and 2024 for three wins and seven placings.
