RACING to her usual pattern of sitting just off the front of the race, Socks Nation, fourth at Group level in two of her past five starts, shocked punters to win the 2,200 metre Group 1 Queensland Oaks at 100/1.

Remarkably she was let go around at that price when prepared by the country’s leading trainer, Ciaron Maher, a renowned conditioner of stayers. Hitting the lead at the top of Eagle Farm straight, Socks Nation had to fight hard to hold the Lope De Vega filly Our Gold Hope at bay to win by a head on the line as the Russian Revolution filly Miss Joelene claimed third.

“I knew she’d stay and you just can’t rule out any of Ciaron’s horses, even though she was a big price. He can do it all and it’s great to win my fourth Group 1, especially for Ciaron, as he used to put me on his horses when I’d just come out of my time as an apprentice” said jockey Ryan Maloney on dismounting. “You can’t knock her form down south, it was a great training effort. We got all the breaks, and she just outstayed them in the end.”

Leading Nation

Bought for A$160,000 from the Inglis Premier Yearling sale, Socks Nation is by the Scat Daddy stallion Sioux Nation who covered just one southern season at Adam Sangster’s Swettenham Stud in Victoria. Socks Nation is his first Group 1 winner. 

“It’s phenomenal, the team has done a super job,” remarked Maher. “She’s been in work 13 months, this filly, and she just keeps on running really well. I didn’t tie Ryan down too much with instructions, he’s pretty casual at the best of times.

“I was surprised she was that far forward in the run, but it worked out perfectly. She worked well during the week, so we didn’t have to do much with her. She goes to a lot of locations, she’s been to the beach and sometimes a change is as good as a holiday.”

GAI Waterhouse and Adrian Bott debuted their Le Havre gelding Eliyass at Randwick on Saturday with the Aga Khan-bred horse winning smartly by two lengths in the Listed Lord Mayor’s Cup over 2,000 metres. Purchased for €330,000 at last year’s Arqana Arc sale by a syndicate led by Seymour Bloodstock, Eliyass improves his overall record to seven wins and two seconds from nine starts. 

“He was in the prime position the whole way, he travelled really well and put them away easily,” said jockey Tim Clark. “There’s plenty more to come with him. We felt from his trials that anything under 2,000 metres would be a bit sharp, so this was a good kick off, but hopefully he has retained a bit of that speed. It was obviously some performance, first-up from the spell, 2,000 metres and on heavy ground.”

JOCKEY James McDonald steered the Kiwi filly La Crique to an impressive win in the A$500,000 Magic Millions National Classic over 1,600 metres at Eagle Farm on Saturday.

Trained by Simon and Katrina Alexander and rightly starting a short-priced favourite, the dual Group 1 winner came from near the tail of the 11-horse field to storm down the outside and win by a length from the Foxwedge mare Foxy Frida and the Shamexpress mare Maracana. 

“If this race wasn’t on offer we might have been scratching our heads wondering which race to come for,” said Katrina Alexander. “But we can build on this now and we’re in no rush to take her home. I’d love to put together a couple of races over here, and we’re mindful we’ve missed the hot end of the carnival. The five-year-old Vadamos mare had now won eight of her 20 starts, finishing unplaced on just four occasions.