Despite carrying 65 kilograms, Choir Boy finds another gear under hoop Ivo Fry to storm home to victory in the feature 2025 Laura Cup on Saturday afternoon. Photo: Lyndon Keane.
Choir Boy has earned himself a whole new army of Far North Queensland racing fans after delivering a comprehensive win in the feature 2025 Laura Cup on 28 June.
After some pre-race jostling in the market between the Allan Holmes-trained Vincenzo ($2.30), Alex Malliff’s Premium Star ($2.20) and Choir Boy, the Janel Ryan-trained six-year-old jumped as the $2 favourite, despite the handicappers hitting him with 65 kilograms for the 1450-metre journey.
Jockey Ivo Fry impressed in the saddle to steer the 2024 Cooktown Cup victor to a 3.48-length win over apprentice Ty Wheeler on Vincenzo and Shania Willis on the Scott Cooper-trained Ammand ($6).
Ryan told Cape York Weekly she had been impressed with how the gelding had carried his weight, and hinted a Cairns Cup campaign could be on the cards before a return to Cape York in November to chase back-to-back wins in the Cooktown Cup.
“He hadn’t lost any momentum [at the final turn], so I was confident,” she said.
“When you’re carrying that kind of weight, you don’t want to lose momentum; he just kept striding and striding and striding, and we knew he was, well … the best horse in the field, and he proved it.”
Fry said Choir Boy “didn’t really get around the turn too well” but that when he hit the straight, the afterburners came on.
Amanda Thomson pilots Purpose’N’Vision to a thrilling victory over Ivo Fry on Brave Intent in the $25,500 Laura 10,000 QTIS Benchmark 50 Handicap on Saturday afternoon. Photo: Lyndon Keane.
“When that horse came around three deep around the outside of me, I was a bit worried at that point, because he did have 65 kilos, and it’s a fair bit of weight to carry – weight like that can stop a train,” he said.
“But as soon as he straightened up, he just flattened out and plastered them over the line.
“At the end of the day, his class just took him through.”
The field in the opening event on the five-race card, the Bill Ware Maiden Plate over 1000m, was reduced to three after two scratchings, with Rachel Shred and Missy Lyn ($1.50F) justifying the short price with a heart-in-mouth finish against Chris Meehan on the Malliff-trained Lichfield Angel ($2) and Fry on Ballroom Boss ($2.30) for Ray Moller.
In the Laura Bracelet over a 1000m trip, Wheeler triumphed on the short-priced Bella Bianca ($1.60F) for Holmes, with Look at Rosa ($5.50) under the guidance of Willis for trainer Bonnie Thomson and Bean Warrior ($7), piloted by Amanda Thomson for the Rodney Miller stable, taking out the placings.
There was No Love Lost ($2F) between the Thomson-trained gelding and Ryan’s Strategist ($2.30) in the Pioneer Cup Benchmark 60, with Fry steering the latter to a 0.28L win to open up third place to Willis on the Cooper-trained Lucky Leni.
With $25,500 prizemoney plus lucrative Queensland Thoroughbred Investment Scheme bonuses on offer, the Laura 10,000 QTIS Benchmark 50 drew the biggest field of the meeting, with eight horses erupting from the gates as they challenged for dominance over the 1200m trip.
In another thrilling finish, Thomson piloted four-year-old Purpose’N’Vision ($3) to a narrow 0.27L win for veteran trainer Roy Chillemi, with Fry and Ryan combining with Brave Intent ($3.50) in second, and Willis providing some value for place punters on Alwyn Bailey-trained The Home Team ($6) in third.
