Bossed Up delivered the performance we&rsquo;ve been waiting for on the weekend, stamping himself as a horse on the rise with a tough and professional win in the Benchmark 85 over 1110m at Doomben. With Angela Jones taking the ride at the light weight, everything fell into place for the 5yo son of Better Than Ready.
Coming out of the gates sharply from the inside draw, he mustered speed to settle in the perfect stalking position. From there, Jones never needed to panic. The race was run at a genuine clip, which suited Bossed Up perfectly, and when the gap appeared turning for home, he showed the turn of foot that has always hinted at bigger things.
He surged through with purpose, put the race away inside the final 100 metres, and was strong through the line&nbsp; a sign that his fitness, maturity, and race craft have all come together at the right time.
With this win coming at the right time of year, Bossed Up now has his sights set for a a Magic Millions Summer Carnival tilt. The $80,000 Magic Millions 2022 purchase has now banked $276,000 in prize money with an impressive career of 14 starts, 5 wins and a further 5 minor placings. This win has the Strong and Gollan Racing affiliation currently striking at a 38% win rate this racing season.

Strong Bloodstock

BOSSED UP ON A MAGIC MILLIONS PATH

GENETIC FREAK continued the stunning start to his career with the Luke Pepper stable when he scored his second successive win at Canberra on Friday.&nbsp;
The 6YO has thrived since moving to the nation&rsquo;s capital and is now unbeaten in two starts for Pepper after his all-the-way win in the Open Handicap (1400m).&nbsp;
Having jumped smartly in the capable hands of talented apprentice Jack Baker, GENETIC FREAK was able to dictate the tempo of the race from the front.
Despite being challenged by several rivals in the home straight, the son of Shalaa still had plenty in reserve as he notched a sixth career win which carried his earnings close to $175,000.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a lovely horse,&rdquo; said Pepper.&nbsp;
&ldquo;He surprised us in his jumpouts because he was very sharp, so I thought he would run well first-up and he&rsquo;s progressed since then. He&rsquo;s now two from two for us, so it&rsquo;s a great start to his career with us.&nbsp;
&ldquo;It was a very good ride, he was able to dictate the speed of the race and he didn&rsquo;t give anything else a chance. This bloke is only going to get better as he gets out in trip, it&rsquo;s great to have a horse with Strong Bloodstock and his owners are going to have a lot of fun with him.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The $42,500 Inglis online purchase has proved to be a particularly shrewd acquisition, many congratulations to our partners: Mr D Lee, Mr T C Scott, Mr T A Gale, Mr P S Dhillon, Mr S L McAlister, Mr C S Thomas, Coffey Bloodstock, Mr B Howell, Smash Crew Racing, Mr D Byron, Mr A S Gage, Mr J Chapman, Mr P S Gage, Mr M Bradstock, Mr M Byron and Mr A R Madigan.

GENETIC FREAK FLIES AGAIN

GENETIC FREAK created a huge first impression for new trainer Luke Pepper when he won on his stable debut at Canberra on Saturday.
Pepper identified a few things with GENETIC FREAK which he thought might improve his performance, and the change of environment brought out the best in the son of Shalaa as he scored his fifth career win in the Open Handicap (1200m).
Given a positive steer from the inside gate by apprentice Jack Baker, GENETIC FREAK hit the front at the 400-metre mark and despite showing some slight signs of late fatigue following a five-month absence from competitive action, the 6YO held on gamely to take his career earnings past $150,000.
&ldquo;I was really happy with the horse heading into the race, and we were even more confident when he drew the inside gate,&rdquo; said Pepper.
&ldquo;We know he&rsquo;ll get better as we get deeper into the preparation, so I&rsquo;m really rapt to get the job done with him first-up. Great credit to the horse and it was a good ride by the young fella, he was able to get a lovely run from the barrier. The horse gave a good kick on the corner and was nice and strong through the line.
&ldquo;He has pulled up really well after the race, so I couldn&rsquo;t be happier with him.&rdquo;
Many congratulations to our partners: Mr D Lee, Mr J Compton, Mr T C Scott, Mr T A Gale, Mr P S Dhillon, Mr S L McAlister, Mr C S Thomas, Coffey Bloodstock, Mr B Howell, Smash Crew Racing, Mr D Byron, Mr A S Gage, Mr J Chapman, Mr P S Gage, Mr M Bradstock, Mr M Byron and Mr A R Madigan.

CAPITAL PERFORMANCE BY GENETIC FREAK

IMPERVIOUS burst through $150,000 in career earnings from just six starts after she fought bravely to secure her second successive city success at Doomben on Saturday.&nbsp;
The flying filly now has a 50% winning strike rate after she backed up her prior victory at Eagle Farm with another determined display in the QTIS 3YO Handicap (1200m).&nbsp;
With three wins and a minor placing from their four starts in tandem, Ange Jones has forged a very fruitful association with IMPERVIOUS and the pair took charge from the outset after a clean break from the gates.&nbsp;
Race favourite Sunrays had only suffered one previous defeat and has Group 1 aspirations in Sydney, but she was unable to chase down our girl in the straight as IMPERVIOUS held on gamely to score by half-a-length.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I was pretty open-minded today,&rdquo; said Jones.
&ldquo;We had a good gate and she&rsquo;s become quite versatile, so I was happy to see how she jumped and ride her accordingly. We ended up in front and she handled it beautifully. It probably took about a furlong to get her into a nice rhythm, but she soon relaxed nicely and was able to kick strongly at the finish.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I did think Sunrays might&rsquo;ve had the better of us, but I think weight and fitness played a big part in the end. She&rsquo;s getting better and better in her races, you can put her anywhere in the race and generally she&rsquo;ll find a way to win.&rdquo;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
Many congratulations to all our partners: Mr A D Phillips, Mr M B Kerz, Mr P S Dhillon, Mr A J Cuddy, Mr J D Chevalley, Mr G J Roberts, Mr S A Marr, Mrs L Daffy, Mr A R Madigan, Mr B W McMahon, Mr T J Williams, Mr S Mitchell, Mrs R Turner, Mr A D Taylor, Ms A Stewart, Ms K Nicholson, Ms K Schrauf, Mr R Cutrie and Georges River Racing.

IMPERVIOUS SCORES MORE CITY SUCCESS

Talented filly IMPERVIOUS extended her impressive record after breaking through at Saturday Metropolitan level at Eagle Farm. After a luckless third in similar grade the start prior, the three-year-old Farnan filly atoned in style as she made it two wins and three placings from her five career starts for trainer Tony Gollan. The win was the first of a Saturday Metro double and extended our terrific run of results to start the new season with five wins and two minor placings from our 10 starters so far. Ridden perfectly by premier jockey Angela Jones in a stalking role travelling outside the leader, IMPERVIOUS showed plenty of toughness to wear down the pacemaker to win by a head on the line. Jones suggested there was plenty of improvement in the youngster who has already collected up over $100,000 in prizemoney for our partners. &ldquo;She was really good today and looks like she&rsquo;s got improvement to come still which is exciting,&rdquo; said Jones. &ldquo;It was nice to see her do everything just how we wanted. &ldquo;I was a bit worried she might get keen without cover but she dropped the bit straight away which was beautiful to see and she&rsquo;s just doing everything right.&rdquo; Congratulations to our partners; Strong Bloodstock, Mr A D Phillips, Mr M B Kerz, Mr P S Dhillon, Mr A J Cuddy, Mr J D Chevalley, Mr G J Roberts, Mr S A Marr, Mrs L Daffy, Mr A R Madigan, Mr B W McMahon, Mr T J Williams, Mr S Mitchell, Mrs R Turner, Mr A D Taylor, Ms A Stewart, Ms K Nicholson, Ms K Schrauf, Mr R Cutrie, Georges River Racing

SATURDAY SUCCESS FOR IMPRESSIVE IMPERVIOUS

Bargain $50,000 purchase GOSPEL GIRL broke through the $200,000 prizemoney barrier after capping a Saturday Metropolitan double for the team at Eagle Farm on Saturday. The daughter of Epaulette overcame a wide run in transit to score a determined victory and make it back-to-back wins at Saturday Metropolitan level for trainer Tony Gollan. The win followed on from the victory of stablemate IMPERVIOUS earlier in the day and extended our terrific run of results to start the new season with five wins and two minor placings from our 10 starters so far. Gollan Racing stable rep Craig Cavanagh paid tribute to the five-year-old mare&rsquo;s toughness given she rose 5.5kg in the weights and was trapped wide in the run. &ldquo;After she won her maiden we thought she might be able to win a Saturday race and now she&rsquo;s put two of them together,&rdquo; said Cavanaugh &ldquo;It was a big jump in the weights and given the ground she covered, she showed a lot of grit so it was good win.&rdquo; Congratulations to our partners Strong Bloodstock, Strong Bloodstock STW, Mr C D McGuire, Mr B W McMahon, Mr G J Carey, Yappy Daze, Mr D W Byron, Mr J M Clark, Mr I S Gabriel, Mr S Macmillan, Mr G J Hempenstall, Mr T Brown, Mr D J Mullaly, Mr R R Chapman, Mr L Haig, Mr T M Davis, A K Racing, Mr P T Collins, Mr S Lefebvre, Mr V Cahill

DOUBLE DELIGHT FOR GOSPEL GIRL

DUKE OF CAMDEN continued our scintillating start to the new racing season after recording our third winner from four runners on Monday at Goulburn. The son of Trapeze Artist overcame a wide run in transit on the speed with top weight of 62kg to prove too strong for his rivals, kicking clear to win by four lengths under the urgings of Jay Ford.  The eye-catching victory marked our third winner from four starters to kick off the new racing season following on from the wins of GOSPEL GIRL and BLAZEN BOOTS over the past six days. Winning jockey Ford said the four-year-old was showing new-found maturity and was ready to go on with the job after making it two wins from three starts this preparation. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s always shown ability but he&rsquo;s let himself down in the past,&rdquo; said Ford. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s held his form really well this prep. You&rsquo;ve just go to let him do him.  &ldquo;He was the most credentialed horse in the race and that&rsquo;s why he had that weight. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s won two from three this preparation and hopefully he can measure up in something a bit better.&rdquo; Trainer David Pfieffer said the son of Trapeze Artist had plenty of upside after making it three wins from his eight career starts. &ldquo;He did a really good job,&rdquo; said Pfieffer. &ldquo;I was a bit worried when he was pulling at the 600m but he looked like he was just traveling too nicely and was in a good rhythm. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s got a lot of upside if we can get that brain to work with us, he&rsquo;s only going to mature more and improve more. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s done a good job in his short career.&rdquo; Congratulations to our partners: Strong Bloodstock, SBS Punters Club 1, Mr B T Healy, Mr T J Williams, Mr W J Pollock, Mr J P Proctor, Mr P Walkden, Mr A Hopewell, SBS Duke, Mr P Code, Mr D Nelson, Mr J Prioste, Flying Codona Racing, Mr P Mosca, Mrs N Drysdale, Mr M E Peters, Mr K Buckley, Mr D Head, Mrs S Walkden, Mr T E Rankin

DUKE CONTINUES NEW SEASON MOMENTUM

GOSPEL GIRL continued our early season success with Tony Gollan when she scored her first Saturday metropolitan victory at Eagle Farm. Three days after her stablemate BLAZEN BOOTS had registered our first win of the new campaign, GOSPEL GIRL got in on the act with an all-the-way romp in the No Metro Wins Handicap (1200m). Given a beautifully-judged steer by Emily Lang, the mare relished the give in the track to bring up a four-timer for Gollan. Having opened her prep with a pair of minor placings, GOSPEL GIRL was rock hard fit third-up and after bouncing out of the gates, she never looked in danger of defeat as she took her career earnings past $150,000. &ldquo;I thought she was probably the stable&rsquo;s best chance coming into the day,&rdquo; said Gollan. &ldquo;She loves the ground and mapped to get on top of the speed with the light weight on her back. She didn&rsquo;t win by a big margin in the end, but I never thought she was going to get beaten. &ldquo;She looked fantastic today and she came here off the back of two really good form races. She&rsquo;s quite a big girl so it always takes a couple of runs to get her fit, but she was ready to run a race here today. Emily did a great job and it&rsquo;s a pleasure to train a winner for Blake and his team. &ldquo;They don&rsquo;t pay a lot for their horses, but we&rsquo;ve trained a lot of city winners for them so we love training for them. We had a nice win with Blazen Boots in midweek so it&rsquo;s great to get another one on the board for the team here today.&rdquo; Many congratulations to our partners: Mr C D McGuire, Mr B W McMahon, Mr G J Carey, Yappy Daze, Mr D W Byron, Mr J M Clark, Mr I S Gabriel, Mr S Macmillan, Mr G J Hempenstall, Mr T Brown, Mr D J Mullaly, Mr R R Chapman, Mr L Haig, Mr T M Davis, A K Racing, Mr P T Collins, Mr S Lefebvre and Mr V Cahill.

GOSPEL GIRL ON SONG IN CITY WIN

BLAZEN BOOTS scored our first win of the new season when he made a red-hot return at Doomben, which has proved a very happy hunting ground.&nbsp;
The 7YO made light of his nine-month absence from competitive action to score his fifth metropolitan win on Wednesday, with four of them coming at Doomben.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Given a perfectly executed steer by Ben Thompson, who has hit the ground running since returning from his stint in Hong Kong, BLAZEN BOOTS led all the way in the Class 5 Handicap to take his career earnings past the $150,000 mark.&nbsp;
Given the son of Tavistock has won previously over the mile, his first-up success over 1350m bodes well for the remainder of his preparation.&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;Because it was a long time between runs, I was a little worried about him today,&rdquo; said trainer Tony Gollan.&nbsp;
&ldquo;He looked fantastic and he&rsquo;s been improving lengths in his work at home, but my only query was where we would end up in the run. Full credit to Ben, I just left it up to him and the ride won the race. The horse did a great job because there&rsquo;s still a fair bit of improvement to come with him.&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;Everything about him was really good today, he was as big and as strong as he&rsquo;s ever been and he&rsquo;s really sound at the minute. This was the right time of year for him to kick off, hopefully he&rsquo;s in for a good prep and we can pick off a Saturday race with him.&rdquo;
Many congratulations to all our partners: Bad Boys Racing, Mr B Hennock, Mr C Chapman, Ms B A Cooper, Mr C R Filer, Ms L N Jaques, Mr J Kennedy, Mr C M Schulz, Mudcrab, Mr M J Quilter, Mr S K B Smith, Mr P C Sposato, Mr M D Leitch, Mr L Te Keeti, Ms M Lillecrapp, Ms J Masters, Mrs C M Mayne, Showtime and Mrs J M Bradley-Smith.

BLAZEN BOOTS IGNITES OUR SEASON

Shrewd buy ZARAGOZA made the most of his home track advantage at Kembla Grange on Thursday when he enhanced an already prosperous prep with a second win since joining the Strong Bloodstock stable.&nbsp;
A $47,500 Inglis Online purchase, ZARAGOZA has now amassed more than $60,000 this campaign thanks to a pair of home track victories and three further minor placings.&nbsp;
All four of the gelding&rsquo;s career wins have now come on home soil, and despite a wide run in transit he was again too strong for his rivals in the Benchmark 68 Handicap (1000m) under Keagan Latham, who like trainers Rob and Luke Price celebrated a treble. 
&ldquo;He enjoyed the step up to 1200 metres today,&rdquo; said Latham post-race.&nbsp;
&ldquo;The draw looked a bit iffy so I was a little worried about where we might end up in the run, but it actually worked out perfectly. I thought there might be more speed in the race, but there wasn&rsquo;t much early tempo and we ended up three-wide. But it meant we could creep up and the horse did virtually all the work for me, I was just a passenger.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I thought he was just going to put them away quite comfortably, but he&rsquo;s a bit of a character and he did just enough to win. If he continues to win with a bit in hand then he should bounce out of his runs in the future. Overall it was a really good effort and I thought he stayed out the 1200 metres quite strongly.&rdquo;
His victory by a long neck also extended our strong recent form, with our last six starters having now produced two wins and a pair of minor placings.&nbsp;
Congratulations to all our partners: Mr S D Pleming, Mr T J Webster, SG Gilleland, Mr G Shalala, Mr L J Woodorth, Mr D Nelson, Mr M D Leitch, Mr R Cutrie, Mr A G Bloom, Mr M Bradstock, HuntyMcHud Racing, Mr P A Curran, Mr M Daniel, Mr A Youssef, Mr M Vassallo and Mr M Duncombe.

Stable News

BOSSED UP ON A MAGIC MILLIONS PATH