Story by Darcy Cosgriff at Racing.com
Dan O’Sullivan’s Moor Mumm has scored a third consecutive win at Flemington on Anzac Day, putting in a last gasp dive to win the Lt Peter Armytage Handicap as a $20 chance.
Betting for the race was dominated by Grahame Begg’s talented mare Niance, who started a $1.45 favourite but jumped very awkwardly, losing several lengths in the process.
O’Sullivan’s galloper travelled smartly down the straight and was presented at the 300-metre mark by Craig Williams, immediately looking a winning chance.
Cliff Brown’s Little Miss Kubi ($10) displayed a ripping turn of foot once in clear air and looked the winner late, but Moor Mumm fought back gamely and got a lunge in right when it mattered, emerging victorious by a nose.
The daughter of Astern has marched through her grades in recent starts, winning the final race of her previous campaign at Benchmark 58 grade, before kicking off this preparation with victories in a Benchmark 64 first-up, and now a 78.
O’Sullivan was uncertain if Moor Mumm had got there on the line, but once victory was confirmed, he was delighted to have notched a city win for a passionate group of owners.
“I was watching it and I wasn’t sure (on the line), I think history says bring the outside up a bit but I was just hoping,” he said.
“She was a bit closer in the run than I thought she’d be, and with no cover, she was moving around a little bit… but it worked out really good.
“I’m just absolutely rapt – it’s a good group of owners here, a lot of family, my wife named the horse and owns the horse.
“She was only a cheap little buy, and now to get three in a row and get her to win at Flemington, it’s huge, just huge.”
The Ballarat-based trainer puts her recent improvement down to a mixture of soundness and keeping her to the slightly shorter trips.
“She developed a splint, so I had to back off her and freshen her up. I didn’t trial her going into Geelong and she was so good there,” he said.
“I thought perhaps I was reading her a little bit long, trying to stretch her out to 1300-1400m.
“So, when this race came up, we were able to get Craig on board… I’m looking forward to his feedback to see which way I should be going with her.
“She’s proved she’s up to this grade, so we’ll just keep chipping away at similar races… with a name like that though, I think she’d be a pretty good marquee horse for the Spring Carnival.”
Moor Mumm wins the Flt Lt Peter Armytage Handicap at Flemington Racecourse on April 25, 2024 in Flemington, Australia. (Photo by Ross Holburt/Racing Photos)
