Sandown reward for Evaporate

Feature wins at Sandown in last September’s Gr.3 Sandown Stakes (1500m) and Saturday’s A$200,000 Ranvet So You Think Stakes (1500m) have bookended a year of highly commendable showings in elite company by Evaporate (NZ) (Per Incanto).

The New Zealand-bred son of Per Incanto followed his victory in last year’s Sandown Stakes with a second in a photo finish to the Gr.1 Toorak Handicap (1600m), a third in the A$10 million Golden Eagle (1500m), a third in the Gr.1 CF Orr Stakes (1400m), a fourth in the Gr.1 Futurity Stakes (1400m), a second in the Gr.1 All-Star Mile (1600m) and close-up ninths in the Gr.1 George Ryder Stakes (1500m) and Doncaster Handicap (1600m).

Evaporate resumed with a third behind Cosmic Crusader (NZ) (Maurice) and Private Eye in the Gr.2 PB Lawrence Stakes (1400m) last month, and Saturday’s race marked a significant step down in class for his second-up assignment.

Punters sent Evaporate out as a $2.05 favourite, and he cruised to a confidence-boosting win by a length and three-quarters with Blake Shinn in the saddle.

“I’m really happy for the team and more so the horse,” Shinn said. “He’s really been knocking on the door at the top level, and he was so well placed today.

“They came here and targeted the race to try and give him some confidence going into the spring, and the horse executed the race probably the best I've ever ridden him.

“I’m super proud of the horse, and well done to the team at home, because he's definitely not an easy horse to manage.

“We definitely believe he's got the talent to be a Group One horse, and it's just more in his head.

“Today was a great sign going forward, and I was just really proud of him. Hopefully he can get that elusive Group One on his CV.”

Evaporate is trained by Ben, Will and JD Hayes.

“What was most pleasing was that this is probably the best he’s settled, particularly in a slowly run race,” JD Hayes said.

“We're thrilled with that. We love Evaporate. He’s been a model of consistency, running in tougher races, and it looked a good race for him today.

“We've got plenty of options with him after this, and we've thrown him in the deep end a lot, and he's also been a horse that's been his own worst enemy. He does a few things wrong, but once he puts it together, we feel like he is a Group One horse, and hopefully that's this preparation.

“Where we end up, I am not sure, but we'll see how he pulls up and have a team discussion on Monday.”

Evaporate was bred by Little Avondale Stud, home to Per Incanto, a son of Street Cry who has won back-to-back Centaine Awards for champion New Zealand-based sire by worldwide progeny earnings.

The dam of Evaporate is the unraced Animal Kingdom mare Savanna (NZ), whose half-sister Belluci Babe (NZ) (Per Incanto), also by Per Incanto, was a Group Three winner for Bjorn Baker.

Evaporate was bought by Lindsay Park Racing for A$330,000 at the Gold Coast Yearling Sale in 2023. He has now had 25 starts for seven wins, 10 placings and A$3.3 million in stakes.