Have dog – will cause upsets
By his standards, a 28-1 winner is a bit on the skinny side. But trainer Stuart Maplesden was unimpressed by the betting on the 2021 ARC Kent Derby which he won in a thrilling finish with Galaxy Freedom . . .
It was a second Category One winner of the year following Punk Rock Mutley’s victory in the Ladbrokes Golden Jacket – but he was a ‘real outsider’ at 33-1.
Stuart said: “Galaxy Freedom was trading at 33s during the day, though I always thought he was way overpriced in a one-off race. Looking at the draw, if the inside trapped he was always going to move off and I thought that might play into the hands of the four, and possibly us. That is how it turned out of course, though I never expected us to back-run the four.
“I watched from upstairs and I was sure we were beaten. I watched the race on HD when I got home and could see that we had won it, though it was very tight. RPGTV showed the photo finish though I’m not sure it was a lot of help (see right).”
Freedom, who was ‘regulation A3’ at Shelbourne Park, has won eight of his 17 UK races and has more than paid back his purchase fee for owner Jozef Kis.
Stuart said: “Jozef had his first runners with me just before first lockdown. At one stage he had about seven, but several weren’t up to his standard and I bought them off him. Freedom wasn’t expensive, about £3K I think and when he first arrived he had blistering early but didn’t stay. I said to Jozef, ‘why have you bought a dog who doesn’t stay to run over 500m at Hove?’ He replied, ‘Maybe he will stay over time’. He was right’.”
Trainer Stuart Maplesden (left) and owner Jozef Kis with Kent Derby winner Galaxy Freedom – Central Park 17th October 2021 – Photo: © Steve Nash
