Group 1 winner Arapaho records first win in 20 months, taking Zipping Classic at Caulfield

Group 1 winning eight-year-old Arapaho showed there was still life in his veteran legs as the former Tancred Stakes victor landed the Group 2 $750,000 Quayclean Zipping Classic (2400m) at Caulfield, scoring for the first time since that March 2023 triumph.

The $4.60 TABtouch favourite was the first to jump but jockey Rachel King was immediately at pains to get cover and slotted the gelding in sixth place, three back the fence as last-start winner Smokin’ Romans ($14) ran to the front.

Ciaron Maher’s stayer was then able to dictate the tempo and as a consequence, Arapaho began to over-race slightly at the 1000m.

Soon after, the tempo lifted and Smokin’ Romans slipped Serpentine ($26) 600m out but still held onto the leader until the 400m.

By that point, King had extricated Arapaho to the outside and was within a length of the pacemaker and bearing down.

Once King got serious, the market leader stormed up and claimed the front with 200m to travel and drew on.

Despite the plucky resolve of Smokin’ Romans, who went down only three-quarters of a length and almost five ahead of the rest, Arapaho emerged the stronger.

Bjorn Baker’s stable representative Luke Hilton said notwithstanding the winless run the son of Lope De Vega had experience, the team could not have been more bullish.

“He put the writing on the wall a couple of starts ago, he backed it up again in the Champions Stakes, and then he’s just franked it today,” Hilton said.

“His work on Tuesday, Bjorn said to me, he said, ‘I’ve never ever had a stayer, or him, work like he did on Tuesday’.

“So, we came full of confidence, the track was obviously a little bit of a question mark – he has won on heavy before – but it was a really good result and he’s back.

“It was a fantastic ride. (Rachel King) loves this horse, she knows him so well – she knows him inside out – and that was just an outstanding win.

“He’s a special horse for the team, it’s taken a long time to get him back.”

The win was even more sentimental with part-owner Paul Griffin passing just weeks ago to injuries sustained in an alleged one-punch attack in Sydney’s northwest on Melbourne Cup Day.