TREASURETHE MOMENT - OAKS & WAKEFUL GLORY

The third day of the 2024 VRC Carnival was one we shall never forget, with our brilliant Yulong Investments bred and owned filly Treasurethe Moment winning the prestigious Group 1 Crown Oaks, with Damian Lane providing one of the rides of the carnival.

Treasurethe Moment's spring campaign consisted of 5 brilliant runs; her only defeat being the first of those, a mares BM64 at Sandown over 1300m where she finished second. On that day - unlike her Oaks victory - barrier 12 did in fact beat her.

It was her following start over 1400m at Sandown where we saw a glimpse of her true potential.

Jumping well from barrier 2, jockey Beau Mertens allowed her to relax and settle third on the rails. On straightening, we saw her tenacity surface as she fought hard to gain the lead after a solid battle between the 400m and 200m marks. Tellingly, she drew away over the closing stages with her best work on the line. It was a meritorious, tough win.

A victory at Caulfield over 1600m then followed, with her now signature brilliant last furlong taking her to her shortest of winning margins, just under half a length. Although it was a hard fought win, for some it posed the question as to whether she would in fact run out a mile and a quarter. Matt was confident in his filly's ability and of course elected to run in the Wakeful Stakes over 2000m on Derby Day.

Jockey Damian Lane was engaged to ride and even with the slight distance query, the market still kept her safe at a respectable $5, such was the impressive nature of her recent successes.

Barrier 4 and an ideal ride by Damian saw her settling well in 5th place, one off and a couple back from the leaders. The ease with which she cruised up on the turn under a hold was clear. It wasn't until the 300m that she was asked for more and quickly extended away. She not only ran out the distance, she excelled over it. The impressive style of the win was replicated just 5 days later in her formidable display in the Crown Oaks.

Damian Lane's exceptional ride the in Oaks from barrier 12 cannot be underestimated. It was outstanding. Slotting into 6th place one off the rail before the first turn out of the straight was the dream scenario. However to achieve this in such a high-stakes pressure race - and onboard the starting favourite no less - showed Damian's excellence and judgement as a rider. Add to that his patience and measured timing in the straight, resulted in a perfect ride. We cannot thank him enough for his brilliant execution at the most crucial time.

It is clear that Treasurethe Moment is an exceptional filly. In addition, she has a wonderful temperament and is a delight to train. She has shown resilience and a toughness that cannot be questioned, having backed up from her Wakeful win with ease. She is the ultimate professional and we are so excited to see where her talent may take her.

We are thrilled to have secured the Oaks for Mr Zhang and the Yulong Investments team with Treasurethe Moment. They have provided great support to Matt Laurie Racing over the past five years and we sincerely thank them for entrusting us to care for their horses. We have an excellent working relationship, one that we hope can continue to prosper and grow. A heartfelt congratulations to the whole team at Yulong - not only on the triumphs of Treasurethe Moment, but also for breeding this outstanding filly and the success of her sire Alabama Express.

These superb wins are a result of a huge team effort and we rely greatly on our hardworking, dedicated staff at Matt Laurie Racing. We appreciate them enormously and thank them for their continued efforts.

The VRC Crown Oaks is one of the defining moments in Australian racing, and the honour of claiming this long standing classic is something we are humbled by and thrilled to achieve.

No doubt we will treasure the moment for a long time to come!