Godolphin-homebred Savatiano lifted late over the concluding stages to win in Saturday’s Group II JJ Liston Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield.
This year’s renewal included seven Group I winners but it was the six-year-old Savatiano (pic: Pat Scala Racing Pictures) who posted her fifth win from eight first-up outings under jockey Mark Zahra.
“When I drew well it was just going to be a matter of getting luck at the right time and it panned out perfect,” Zahra said.
“I was very confident at the 300 (metre mark). I was nearly going to put the whip away and just cruise past Sircconi.
“Daniel Stackhouse was roaring and I just had to give her a bit of a shake-up. I always thought I was going to get there but it was harder than I thought.”
It is the fifth stakes win for the James Cummings-trained daughter of Street Cry and her third at Group 2 level. Her record now stands at 10 wins and 12 placings from 33 starts and earnings of $1.761 million.