Lockdown stuns Nigel B Nunes Memorial field

LOCKDOWN yesterday stunned sprinters in the Nigel B Nunes Memorial Cup, scoring a 75-1 upset from the dreaded post-position one at five furlongs straight, his first attempt at the overnight-allowance level, turning tables on rivals who had beaten him up to a month ago.

Shunned in the betting, four-year-old LOCKDOWN was not only racing outside his preferred middle-distance sweet spot after beating non-winners of four races at a mile on September 19, the Ryan Darby-trained colt skipped non-winners-of-an-overnight-allowance to face previous winners at the level such as 4-5 favourite MONEY MARKET.

Always prominent on the far side, Paul Francis urged LOCKDOWN to tackle rail-running COMMANDER Z approaching the furlong pole before blasting past the United States-bred five-year-old, who twice factored in interference caused to MONEY MARKET, herding which cost the hot favourite what would have been a sure win.