Rothesay’s ultra-consistent son Chapter And Verse has a win in a $1 million race to his credit but the 5yo gelding was still searching for his first stakes win when he entered the barriers for Saturday’s Group III TAB George Moore Stakes (1200m) at Doomben.
The Desleigh Forster-trained gelding fended off the Spirit Of Boom pair of Outback Barbie and Boomsara, denying the high-flying Eureka Stud stallion a race to race stakes double after Sugar Boom won the Listed Mode Stakes.
But it could not have been any closer. The judge needed his magnifying glass to find a nose margin over Outback Barbie with a short neck to Boomsara in third.
The winner of the Racing Qld Magic Millions Quality at the Gold Coast in January, Chapter And Verse will now head back to the Magic Millions carnival where his likely target will be the Magic Millions Cup.
"What can I say other than he is a special horse. He is a good horse. I think he can be the best I have trained and I think he can win in even better company," Forster told AAP.
"Mark (Du Plessis) knows exactly how to ride him. I was a bit worried when he got so far back but Mark got clear at the right time."
Chapter And Verse advanced his record to 6 wins, 5 seconds and 4 thirds from 19 starts with earnings of $945,075.
He was purchased by his trainer for $28,000 out of the Raheen Stud draft at the 2016 Magic Millions Gold Coast March Yearling Sale.
A half-brother to the stakes-placed Soaring Heart (Show a Heart), Chapter And Verse is the best of four winners from six to race out of the stakes-placed Perugino mare McFly who was purchased by Rosemont Stud for $80,000 at the 2018 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale.
Her Golden Archer filly failed to make her $60,000 reserve at this year’s Gold Coast March Yearling Sale.
McFly has a yearling filly by Spirit Of Boom and a filly foal by Starcraft.
Chapter And Verse becomes the fourth stakes-winner for Lyndhurst Stud’s Fastnet Rock stallion Rothesay who stands in 2019 at an advertised service fee of $4,950.