In Brief
- Strawberry Rock upsets stablemate to win the 2025 Hobart Cup.
- Maher quinella again.
- Both will stay for the Launceston Cup.
Champion trainer Ciaron Maher brought two horses to Hobart for the $250,000 Ladbrokes Hobart Cup and walked away with the quinella as he had in the Summer Cup a fortnight earlier.
This time, though, placings were reversed with Strawberry Rock ($6.50) getting home by a head from Promises Kept ($3) with Alhambra Lad ($19) finishing third.
Strawberry Rock met his stablemate 2kg better for his defeat in the Summer Cup and that proved to be the telling factor in a slugging finish.
An 8yo imported galloper, Strawberry Rock has raced only 31 times but has amassed $680,000 in prize money.
The time for the race was only a half second outside the track record set last year, Goldman setting a quick tempo in the mid stages opening up a five-length break but was gathered in around the home turn.
“Strawberry Rock loves that sort race where there’s a lot of pressure from a long way out, he is a chaser if he does get to the front he tends to float a bit.
“Promises Kept just got run down by a better horse who met his stablemate a little bit better at the weights in this race, so a great result for the stable, they will stay on now for the Launceston Cup,” Jack Turnbull from the Maher stable said.
Strawberry Rock and Promises Kept will stay on for the $250,000 Ladbrokes Launceston Cup on 26 February. Strawberry Rock will be chasing the $150,000 bonus for a horse to win the Cups double.
“They have really thrived down here at Seven Mile Beach,” Turnbull said after confirming both would stay here for Launceston.
Watch Strawberry Rock win the 2025 Ladbrokes Hobart Cup.