No Compromise (NZ) Too Tough in Queen’s Cup

With a performance worthy of his name, Karaka graduate No Compromise (NZ) (Pins) overcame a torrid run to score the biggest win of his career in Saturday’s A$160,000 Group Three Queen’s Cup (2400m) at Rosehill. 

Offered by breeder Gordon Cunningham’s Curraghmore in Book 1 of Karaka 2018, No Compromise was a $40,000 purchase by Bill Thurlow. The gelding has now earned A$425,220 in a 25-start career that has produced six wins and 12 placings.

Trained by Chris Waller for owners Grant and Patricia Thurlow, No Compromise brought solid form into Saturday’s staying feature, having placed in three of his four lead-up runs.

But the five-year-old’s prospects looked bleak within the first 400 metres of the race as he was trapped in no man’s land, three-wide and much handier than usual as the field made its way around the first turn.

But jockey Jay Ford made the best of a bad situation, continuing to slide forward to sit outside the leader down the back of the track.

No Compromise was poised to pounce at the top of the home straight and quickly charged to the lead, holding off the challenges of stablemates Surefire (Fastnet Rock) and Chalk Stream (Sea The Stars) through the final 200 metres for a super-impressive win.

“We were looking to ride him in the second half of the field, but the problem was he took a step forward as the gates opened and he just launched straight into the bridle and put me a lot closer than I was hoping,” Ford said.

“I took my time trying to find some sort of position, sort of three pairs back, but it was never going to eventuate.

“I just had to let him slide forward to outside the leader. It just shows, the horse has been going really well from bad barriers, we’ve been riding him quiet – and that was the plan again today – but it just shows his versatility. And it’s a good reward for him, because his last two runs have been terrific.

“He’s a horse on the rise. He’ll stay, he handles all conditions, he still has to tick the two-mile box, but he’s well on his way.”

That 3200-metre test is likely to come at Randwick on April 9, where Waller will run No Compromise in the A$2m Group One Sydney Cup (3200m).

“All I’ve got on my mind is the Sydney Cup,” Waller said. “He was certainly a lot closer than I expected today. Obviously you want to win every start, but you don’t want to undo the plans. If he had been posted deep, it would have been a tricky run, but to Jay’s credit he backed himself and got the job done, with a bit of firepower chasing him.”

The beautifully bred No Compromise is a half-brother to Tofane (NZ) (Ocean Park), who has won four Group One races across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane for trans-Tasman trainer Mike Moroney.

Vendor	Curraghmore
Purchaser	Mr WJ Thurlow (Whanganui)
Breeding	Pins – Baggy Green
Sale	Lot 49, Karaka 2018 Book 1, $40,000
Bred by	G R Cunningham