Mr Verse hits the right note

PIC: Courtesy Darren Winningham

Impressive three-year-old Mr Verse left it late but nailed his third win at the Sunshine Coast on Saturday, July 5.

The Tony & Calvin McEvoy-trained gelding finished strongly over the last 200 metres to win the Caloundra RSL Benchmark 70 Handicap (1200m).

The trainers decided to freshen up and send Mr Verse to Queensland after his last win over 1600 metres at Pakenham in February.

The son of Lope de Vega won a 1000 metre trial on the Sunshine Coast synthetic on June 24 to have him ready for a first-up tilt.

Ridden by Ashley Morgan, the gelding sat in midfield before being asked late to challenge for a win.

The $4.40 favourite, Mr Verse arrived to win by a long neck from Gospel Girl ($7.50) with Runwiththetide ($6.50), a half-length away third,

Trainer Tony McEvoy is confident Mr Verse has a strong campaign ahead.

“It was a bloody good effort by this fella today,” McEvoy said.

“He began well and got into a beautiful spot early.

“He travelled nicely until they quickened when he got a bit dour.

“But he responded to the riding of jockey Ashley Morgan, and the further they went, the better he got.

“It was a really good effort by Mr Verse to be winning over this distance.

“He also was a bit above himself pre-race. He will come on in leaps and bounds.”

Winning jockey Ashley Morgan said Mr Verse had been amazing.

“He was excellent,” Morgan said.

“Over that trip he relaxed really well.

“Even though he got caught flat-footed when they sprinted, I felt he was always underneath me and would pick up.

“He got a little lost in the straight and he is still learning but did a great job to win.

“It was a remarkable job for a 2000 metre horse, and he is a beautiful horse going forward.”