With the march towards the $2m G1 MRC Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) now on in earnest, Saturday’s running of the $250,000 G3 MRC Blue Diamond Preview (F) (1000m) at Caulfield saw a surprise result with Greg Eurell’s Rubi Choice taking the prize as one of the outsiders in the field.
With two late scratched runners taking the field down to nine, it was Ciaron Maher’s Harry Angel filly Angels Fury who jumped away a short-priced favourite off the back of two recent jumpout victories.
Sporting the Te Akau Racing silks, the Mark Walker trained I Am Aria jumped the swiftest of them all, with the Michael Dee ridden I Am Invincible filly going forward to take up the running with Explosive Magic out three wide with Gin Twist pushing between the pair.
Wobbling slightly around the home turn, it was clear not all was right with Angels Fury as the favourite quickly dropped back through the pack while I Am Aria and Gin Twist looked set to battle it out.
Coming off their back, Beau Mertens came to the outside aboard Rubi’s Choice, working home strongly to draw level with the leaders with 50m to go before pulling away to record G3 success on debut, running a quicker time than the colt’s did in their Preview the race prior.
Holding on for second was I Am Aria, three-quarters of a length behind the winner with the Ben, Will and JD Hayes trained Gin Twist weakening into third, becoming the fifth first-crop stakes performer from just 14 runners for Home Affairs.
Interestingly, Rubi’s Choice and I Am Aria and had finished third and second respectively in their most recent jumpout behind Queen’s English (Snitzel) who could only manage seventh in Saturday’s race.
Connections now have a decision to make as the filly is not currently in the running for the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes on February 21, and with third declarations on Tuesday, a $55,000 late entry fee would need to be paid.
Bred and part owned by Lionel Krongold, Rubi’s Choice is the fourth winner, and first black type success story from five to the races out of the three-time-winning Haradasun mare Redasun, a half-sister to the Listed winner Rednav.
Since producing Rubi’s Choice, Redasun has foaled consecutive fillies, both by Redoute’s Choice’s G1-winning son King’s Legacy.
“What I like with her is she's so progressive,” said Eurell post-race. “Every time she's sort of gone out, learned a bit, she's held it and progressed with it.
“She couldn't have led into this any better than what she did and today was certainly, I felt she was super well. We're going to get a really good guide on where she sits.”
“If she wasn't good enough, well, fair enough, back to the paddock and then progress as a three-odd, which I believe, you know, that's probably where she's going to be at her best.
“She's not nominated for the Diamond at this point. So, if she pulls up well, you know, with natural progression would be the Prelude. And then, you know, we'll take it from there.
Rubi's Choice is from a family Eurell knows well, having trained the mare and all of her progeny to race.
“Oh, tremendous, mare. I mean, everything out of her just keeps winning, no matter who she goes to and we had another two-year-old, Lincoln Square, who was a full brother to this filly and that recipe worked. So it was the right decision to go back and it's worked again.”
Rubi’s Choice became the 16th stakes winner for her former Coolmore, then Swettenham Stud based sire Rubick (Encosta de Lago), who has since been exported to stand at China’s Huayu Horse Industry, which belongs to leading Chinese owner Huang Qing Cai.
Rubick’s dual G1-winning son Jacquinot was represented by his first crop yearlings at this year’s Magic Millions yearling sale where they sold up to $425,000 and averaged $218,125 off a $33,000 (inc. GST) service fee.
