With A Promise continues to defy odds for trainer Ben Currie
UNDERRATED three-year-old With A Promise was an impressive winner at Ipswich on Cup day and trainer Ben Currie is confident his filly can continue stepping up.
The I Am Invincible filly was a value purchase for Mike Crooks – who runs the successful Mishani Enterprises in Queensland, having been bought for $26,000 and already winning over $180,000 from only 13 starts.
“Mike Crooks bought, he’s got the Mishani horses,” Currie told HorseBetting.com.au. “All the ones he breeds he calls Mishani so-and-so, but the ones he buys at the sales are all called something different.
“He sent her up to me and we’ve had a good run. She’s won 4-5 races for us, a stakes race and a couple of city wins.”
With A Promise had no betting support in the Schweppes T.L Cooney Handicap ($25 at CrownBet.com.au) after running 10th at Doomben, but the lightly-framed filly is best kept fresh which wasn’t the case late last month.
“The biggest thing is having her fresh at the races because she’s only a lightly-framed thing. If you give her too much racing she goes a bit flat,” Currie said.
“I think that was the problem at her second-last run. I think she was a bit flat and we went one run too many without giving her a freshen up.”
Giving it the freshen up certainly did the trick at Ipswich on Saturday and having already won the Listed Silk Stocking at the Gold Coast earlier this campaign, With A Promise looks a talented horse for the future.
“She won the Silk Stocking a few runs back and people thought it was a bit of a fluke, so it was good to see her do it again on the big stage,” Currie said.
“She’s pulled up well, she’s come through as good as expected.”
Currie will look to run the filly on Sunshine Coast Cup day (July 1) in an age-group race or the $175,000 Glasshouse Handicap on the same day.
“I’d say we give her one more run, but not 100 percent sure,” Currie said. “There’s a 1200m race for three-year-olds in two weeks on the Sunshine Coast.
“I’d say that’s where we go or we possible might enter her in the Glasshouse on the same day.”
Currie has entertained the thought of stepping it up over a longer distance than the 1200m after running fourth over 1400m behind the high quality Sacred Elixir last year.
“She will definitely get 7 furlongs and wants to get that trip, but it’s just the way things have panned out, we haven’t had the opportunity,” he said.
Track conditions certainly won’t be affecting the filly, having won the Silk Stocking as an $81 chance on a good track and winning at Ipswich on Saturday on rain-affected ground.
“I was probably a little bit worried about the track conditions yesterday because her run previous to yesterday was a touch down on what she had been doing,” Currie said. “That was on a wet track, so we went into yesterday thinking the track might be an issue, but she handled that track pretty well and it was fairly wet.
“It was definitely on the heavy side, although they reported it being soft.
“I don’t think it matters what track she goes on.”
The horizon looks bright for With A Promise, which jumped up in rating after Saturday’s quality 1.8-length win.
“Her rating is getting up there now – up to 94 or higher. We’ve got to work out what we want to do with her,” Currie said. “If she wins again that changes the ball game because the rating will get high which probably rules her out of Brisbane.
“She’s an improving filly, she’s an I Am Invincible and if she can strengthen and thicken up you never know what she might achieve.”