The ultimate professional Real Love, clawed the lead off her stubborn stablemate Puccini in the closing stages of Saturday's Group III Channel Seven Premier's Cup to chalk up her seventh stakes win.
Brad Rawiller gave the $2.80 favourite a charmed run but her Darren Weir-trained stablemate Puccini showed why he was the subject of a long price plunge when he reluctantly surrounded the lead before going down by a length with Benzini another neck back in third. (photo Grant Courtney).
The $300,000 Group II Brisbane Cup (2400m) on June 11 now looms large for the Bob and Sandra Peters homebred who advances her overall record to 9 wins, 5 seconds and 6 thirds from 27 starts for earnings of $1,140,410.
Rawiller, who has ridden the mare in five of her last six starts since Weir took over the training of the daughter of Desert King believes the 2400 metres of the Brisbane Cup will be ideal.
"There's no question that's her pet distance," Rawiller said.
"We thought the way she won at Flemington, the Adelaide Cup would suit her but that ended up being just beyond her.
"Up to 2400 metres she still has her turn of foot and she's progressing beautifully she's holding up well in her condition and coast, the team have her ticking over beautifully."
Jarrod McLean, stable foreman for Weir, said Real Love is a great example of Weir's training regime.
"When you consider she's coming off a long campaign in Western Australia it's a real testament to how these horses respond to the beach work at Warrnambool," McLean told AAP.
"I flew up here on Wednesday and I was delighted with the way she looked so hopefully she can win again in a fortnight's time."
A sister to the stakes-placed Desert Glow and a half-sister to the Group III winner Suspicion, Real Love is the tenth foal of the pensioned Salieri mare Flaming Heart the winner of the Group III VATC Thoroughbred Club Stakes and the Listed VRC Great Western Stakes.
