A daring drive by Kyle Marshall caught the rest of the field off guard as the Cambridge horseman guided Superfast Ninja to her fifth career win.
Drawn three at the start, Marshall dropped the six-year-old mare into the trail for the early stages of the 2700m race at Cambridge Raceway.
With a lap and a half to go, Marshall decided the pace was too slow so he took Ninja past the leader and pushed her forward.
As the race leader turned for home, Marshall had strung out the field and it was too late for all but runner-up Expensive Crumpet to reduce the winning margin which turned out to be 1 1/2 lengths with more than 4 lengths to the next best runner.
Marshall was driving the trotter for trainer Andrew Drake in the Speeding Spur @ Woodlands Tender by 29 October Handicap Trot.
The win provided connections with an $8,000 winning stake, taking lifetime earnings to almost $53,000.
At the tote, the mare paid $5.90 for the win and $2.30 for the place.
Result
Race 5, September 16, 2021
- Superfast Ninja (Kyle Marshall)
- Expensive Crumpet
- Emma Frost
Margins: 1 1/2 lengths, 4 1/4 lengths, 1 length
Times: Mile Rate: 2-04.8 Last 800m: 62.4 Last 400m: 32.4