A TILT at the Kyneton Cup awaits Penny To Sell after the mare exceeded her stable's expectations by winning the Gunbower Cup on Saturday.
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The Mick Sell-trained eight-year-old defied a firm surface and the top weight of 60kg to win the $25,000 feature race for the second time.
She previously won the race as a six-year-old in 2017, when carrying the bottom weight.
Stable representative Mel Sell declared the win one of the toughest of Penny To Sell's remarkable career.
"She just exceeded our expectations, she really did," she said.
"We knew she had the class factor, but the track was very, very firm and I had a few concerns with the 60kg on her back.
"With an eight-day back-up (from a first-up run over 1200m at Moonee Valley) and 1800m second-up, and with some horses carrying almost 10 kg less, I thought she was good enough, but would not have been surprised if she had just needed that run.
"But she's just so tough."
Penny To Sell was ridden brilliantly by Sam Payne, who finished the day at Gunbower with four winners in the seven races run.
The mare staved off a brave challenge from the Brent Stanley-trained Shaq to win by under a length, with the favourite Royal Volley back in third.
It was the three-time city winner and reigning Bendigo middle-distance horse of the year's third country cups win and her 12th career win in 64 starts.
She also won the Dunkeld Cup in 2018 and was second in the Avoca Cup in 2017.
Sell said Penny To Sell would now be set for the $125,000 Kyneton Cup, the day after the Melbourne Cup.
The mare finished fifth in the 2000m cup in 2017.
"We will have a look and see what her rating goes to - before yesterday she was 83 - as to whether we run her in between and whether we just go straight to Kyneton," Sell said.
"And then we might have another crack at Dunkeld."
The mare's win gave the Sell stable two victories in as many days, after their success with Raid The Cabinet at Kyneton on Friday.
Sell praised the efforts of Bendigo Equine Hospital's Sarah Jalim in helping the gelding get back to the track after a succession of health problems.
"He was out of form and we ran a few bloods to get to the bottom of it because there were no real signs anything was wrong," she said.
"Sarah did a few tests and found that his red blood cells were right down and she did everything a good vet does and got him feeling his best again.
"Then we thought we had him ready and he got a foot abscess race day and we had to scratch him.
"We then took him to Bendigo and decided to play up in the barrier and was scratched.
"We gave him a trial during the week and gave him gallop to take the edge off him and make sure he behaved himself.
"The plan at Kyneton once we drew the outside gate was to ride him quietly from behind, but once Jason (Baldock) realised he was going to get caught wide, he used his own initiative and took him to the front.
"He got a really cheap lead and nothing wanted to take him on. Jason basically said "I've used nothing, I might as well go."
"He said it was a super-tough win."
Raid The Cabinet's fourth career win was the six-year-old's first since his success at Bendigo in December last year.
Meanwhile, Brent Stanley finished Saturday with a winner after Shakam broke his maiden status with a 1300m win in the opening race at Gunbower.
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