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BENDIGO’S Chris Svanosio is confidently looking ahead to a trip to the United States with Sparkling Success following the brilliant trotter’s return to form at Melton on Friday night.
The John Meade-trained six-year-old made it back-to-back wins in the Group 2 Breeders Crown Trotters Free For All (2240m), in what is expected to be the gelding second last start in Australia before he takes on the best trotters in the world in the $1.3 million Yonkers International Trot in New York in October.
His win was part of a winning double for Svanosio on Friday night.
He also gained success as a trainer with Margaret Jean, who won an action-packed Group 2 Breeders Crown Trotters Championship for four-year-old mares.
Svanosio elected to drive his other horse Rosehill Magic, who finished sixth, leaving Mark Pitt to pick up the winning drive.
Sparkling Success, who earlier this year delivered Svanosio his first Group 1 win as a driver in the Maori Mile at Lord’s Raceway in January, was having his third start back from a five-month spell.
The 35-year-old said the win had silenced critics of the horse after his first two runs back from spell had produced a pair of minor placings.
“He’s been a great horse for me, easily the best I’ve driven,” he said.
“He’s had a couple of months off and there were a few people knocking him on his first two runs.
“It’s just taken him a couple of runs, but he was back at his best on Friday night.”
Svanosio said it was especially pleasing to get win in the lead up to the gelding’s departure for the United States on September 15, where he will take on the world’s best trotters.
“He’ll probably have one more run before he goes,” he said.
“The race is on October 14, so he’ll have a couple of good weeks in the US before that, all going well.
“He hadn’t won for a while before last night, so it was good to bounce back.”
Margaret Jean’s win was a case of history repeating itself for Svanosio. He won the same race in 2016 with Aldebaran Ay M.
Svanosio said Margaret Jean, a winner of six of her 30 starts, had enjoyed plenty of luck in the run.
“There was touch of Steve Bradbury to it, the favourite knocked out about four of them with a lap to go – the one I was driving (Rosehill Magic) got pretty badly interfered with,” he said.
“Margaret Jean was over on the fence and missed the trouble. There was more interference at the top of the straight and Margaret Jean just poked through and won.
“She was 60-1 and is no star .... she just did everything right – that’s the aim of the game.
“It was definitely the biggest win of her career.”
Her trainer said Margaret Jean was likely now to be retired ahead of a career as a broodmare.
Svanosio will have two runners in tonight’s Breeders Crown Three-Year-Old Final at Melton – last start winner Anywhere Hugo (currently $4.50) and Kyvalley Finn ($10).
Gavin Lang will drive Anywhere Hugo, while Svanosio will partner his stablemate.
The race is at 5.25pm.
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