Kersley In Love With Paris
14 April, 2018
Thoroughbred
For a fourth consecutive week, a Fred Kersley three-year-old has saluted at Ascot, with In Love With Paris taking out the Amelia Park Beef Handicap (1200m).
In Love With Paris won first-up on March 24 at his most recent start, before Necklet broke through for her maiden win a week later, while Mizlecki took out the Raconteur Stakes last week.
The Rogano gelding, who started $6.50, was ridden urgently out of the gates by champion jockey Paul Harvey to sit outside leader Tango Ora.
Pearls And Prawns jumped a warm favourite after entering the race unbeaten from three starts, settled at the tail of the field, while Rockon Tommy was slow away from the gates.
The pattern in early races at Ascot suggested being close to the speed was an advantage, and it worked out well for In Love With Paris here.
The gelding hit the front with just over 200m left to go, and put the result beyond doubt as he displayed a strong turn-of-foot in the final 200m to record a one-and-a-quarter length win.
Three Secrets, who dropped back from the 1500m of the Raconteur Stakes last week to the 1200m today, put in a solid performance today to finish second, with Pearls And Prawns back in third.
After the race, Kersley said he wasn’t sure if In Love With Paris would perform as well as he did first-up, but suggested he had a good future ahead of him
“I didn’t know how to see the race, I thought he might have come away a little easier and settled in the first half dozen,” he said.
“The question was whether he would outlast them and he did.
“He will probably get 1400 or with the right run even further later in his career, but at the moment 1200 is good.”
The day got better for Kersley later on when Taxagano made it three wins in a row in the Amelia Park Wines Handicap (1400m).
Kersley said he would look to step the Rogano gelding out to the mile next start, a trip which he thinks will see the best of the galloper.