Atta boy Tommy! Ants really impressed by tonight’s tough all-the-way win in 1:52.7
By Barry Lichter • 24 July 2021
The way Tommy Lincoln felt at Albion Park tonight, top driver Anthony Butt said he knew he’d take pegging back.
And Butt was proven right when arguably Lincoln Farms’ most popular pacer set the pace again and staved off home stretch challenges inside and out to claim his third win from four starts in Brisbane.
“He felt really good tonight, very sharp,” Butt said. “He’s got better with every run, like all the team.”
Butt said even though he turned for home barely a length in front of favourite Crunch Time and trailer Fairy Tinkabell, he was actually more confident than when the horse won his previous start.
Anthony Butt brings Tommy Lincoln back after his third win at Albion Park.“His manners were really good. He settled really well in front and got into a nice rhythm.
“I knew when they came at him he’d have a kick and take a bit of getting past. He had nice horses all around him, in the chair and in the trail, so he did well to hold them off.”
At the post Tommny Lincoln had a neck to spare over Fairy Tinkabell, with a head to Crunch Time, clocking the very good mile rate of 1:52.7 for the 1660 metres.
“That’s a good time round here, they don’t go much faster than that,” Butt said.
Tommy Lincoln reeled off quarters of 27.7, 29.8, 28 and 27.4, Butt impressed again by the horse’s early speed.
“With that gate speed of his he should do really well over here, especially now the carnival has finished and all the inter-state horses will go home.”
Tommy Lincoln staves off Fairy Tinkabell, inner, and Crunch Time.Tommy Lincoln will continue to race from the stable of Mark Dux, who has hosted the Lincoln Farms team at the winter carnival.
Tonight’s win was the 11th of his 33 start career, giving him an impressive winning strike rate of 33.3%.
The A$11,655 winner’s purse took his Brisbane bankroll to A$24,233, winning three of his four starts.
That, added to the $97,515 he earned in New Zealand, has been a terrific return for Lincoln Farms’ owners John and Lynne Street and their partners in the horse, Ian Middleton, Shannon and Brenda Flay, Ian, Kathy and Daniel Parkinson, Debbie Sparks, Ray Menzies and Denis Ebert.
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Ray’s comments
Thursday night at Cambridge
Race 1: Rivergirl Bella
5.40pm
“She’s going as good as she can. She’s got a bit of speed but isn’t that strong. But she should get a nice trip here and be right in the frame. She’ll win one soon.”
Race 1: Jessie Lincoln
5.40pm
“She’s a big filly who has taken time to mature but she has plenty of ability. She’s a good pacer and I expect her to improve on her resuming run and go well.”
Race 1: Lincoln Dealer
5.40pm
“He’s a bit of a handful, too keen for his own good sometimes, so I’ll be happy to see him just get round and do most things right. He’s no superstar but he’s coming to it slowly but surely. We’re throwing him in the deep end here and he has a terrible draw but we have to start somewhere.”
Race 4: Lincoln Maree
7.04pm
“She’s as tough as old boots and tries like hell and you can’t ask for much more than that. She just lacks a bit of speed but has a good attitude. She usually finds one or two better than her but will make them work for it anyway.”
Ray’s comments
Friday night at Auckland
Race 1: Prince Lincoln
4.56pm
“He’ll be improved for the last run, has trialled and is working well, and has a better draw (the ace) this time. You just have to be a bit wary because he’s let us down a couple of times.”
Race 3: Angelic Copy
5.56pm
“She had a tie-up issue but seems much better now. It’s her first run for a while so she’ll definitely need the run. I’m just hoping she gets around all right and pulls up OK.”
Race 3: Colonel Lincoln
5.56pm
“He’s a very capable horse, if injury prone, and he’s been back in work for three or four months. You never say never but, realistically, he’s just starting off so you can’t expect him to be at his peak.”
Race 5: Sammy Lincoln
6.55pm
“I know I said it two starts back but if there’s such a thing as a certainty, he’s it. Even from seven on the gate, everything says he’s the one to beat. If he hadn’t gone a bit goofy up the home straight last time in the Sires’ Stakes Semi at Cambridge, he’d have easily run third. This is a huge drop in class.”
Race 7: Sugar Ray Lincoln
7.58pm
“I expect he’ll be a bit sharper this time. He’s looking well and feeling good but I still think another run under his belt will be beneficial for him. He’s not one to leap out of the ground but he is capable of taking the race.”
