JRA Cup Brings Out the Best in Jon Snow (NZ)

The step up to 2040 metres in Friday night’s A$200,000 Group 3 MSC Signs JRA Cup was all the top-class Karaka graduate Jon Snow (NZ) (Iffraaj) needed to show his true colours at Moonee Valley last night.

After a string of big-race placings through the New Zealand 2016-17 season, including the Group 1 New Zealand Derby (2400m), the $65,000 Select Sale purchase came of age in Sydney in the autumn with back-to-back wins in the Group 2 Tulloch Stakes (2000m) and Group 1 Australian Derby (2400m).

After resuming with unplaced finishes in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) and Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m), but close-up on both occasions, Jon Snow stepped up into his favoured distance range on Friday night and delivered a top performance.

Ridden by Stephen Baster, Jon Snow was prominent throughout the race and took the lead around the home turn en route to a comfortable victory by three-quarters of a length.

“We thought he would go better tonight – he needed the distance,” said Murray Baker, who trains in partnership with Andrew Forsman.

“It was probably too short for him the past two starts, but he's improved a lot in the last couple of weeks. He's a good stayer.”

Jon Snow is now likely to join his Group 1-winning stablemate, and fellow Karaka graduate, Bonneval (NZ) (Makfi) in the famous Caulfield Cup on October 21.

Bred by RWE Moore, Jon Snow is out of the O’Reilly mare Orinda (NZ) and descends from the Moore family’s famous line that includes such illustrious performers as Solveig, Soliloquy, Greig, Soltanto and many more.

Offered by Haunui Farm at the 2015 Select Sale, Jon Snow was bought by Forsman for $65,000. He is raced by the Zame Partnership, for whom he has now won more than $1.8 million in prize-money.