VICTORIAN ace Jason Lee will drive Cigano in the world’s richest pacing race after the untapped pacer secured Team Lee’s Levarg slot in the $1.5 million TAB Eureka.
Team Lee bought the slot with a view to running their own exciting pacer Keayang Renegade, but injury sidelined him and left them hunting for an outsider.
“We looked at a few options, but Cigano has been the focus of our group for the past few weeks,” Paddy Lee said.
“His win in what was essentially the Victoria Cup consolation was stunning and then he came out and won so well again at Menangle (last Saturday night).
“Having our slot in the race, we really wanted Jason (Lee) to drive whatever horse we landed on and Clayton (Tonkin) and Emma (Stewart) were very understanding of that when we talked about Cigano.”
Cigano, who boasts 12 wins from just 18 starts, made it six wins from five starts this season at Menangle.
The son of former Chariots Of Fire winner Poster Boy isn’t just trained by Tonkin and Stewart, but Tonkin owns him as well.
“We’ve always had a big opinion of him and he’s really showing this campaign,” Stewart said.
“He’s one we always had the Eureka firmly in our sights with so it’s great to lock away a slot for him.”
Cigano’s confirmation gives Stewart and Tonkin a second runner in a race they have dominated across its three-year history.
They won the inaugural TAB Eureka in 2023 with Encipher, had second and third (Bay Of Biscay and High Above) in 2024 and landed the quinella with Bay Of Biscay and Fox Dan last year.
Their other confirmed runner this year is Victoria Oaks winner Bettor Beach, who is the first three-year-old filly to land a slot in the Eureka’s history. She capped her preparation with a sparkling Melton win last Saturday night.
With four slots still available, Stewart and Tonkin have the firepower to potentially match their record four runners in last year’s TAB Eureka.
Fox Dan and The Last Trip scored wins at Melton and Menangle respectively last Saturday night.
Both are believed to be strongly in consideration with two or three of the remaining slot owners.
The other confirmed runners are: Loucasso (Rampant Standardbreds), Double Lou (Tony Licastro), Soho Charmer (Soho Standardbreds), Bettor Beach (Harnesslink) and Fate Awaits (Western Jewel).
The remaining slot owners are: Cordina Racing, Team Zav (Danny and Jo Zavitsanos), Kevin and Kay Seymour and Go Racing (Mick Harvey).
Photo by: https://www.thetrots.com.au/