Bronski Beat Causes Sandown Cup Boilover

BRONSKI Beat has literally staggered across the line to win Thursday night's Group 1 RSN Sandown Cup Final (715m) for trainer Brendan Pursell.

Going into the race as one of the outsiders following a big odds heat victory last week, the son of Fernando Bale repeated the dose in Thursday's $50,000 to-the-winner decider, delivering Pursell his first group 1 trophy.

But it wasn't without incident, the newly crowned group 1 champ faltering just strides before the finishing post when a comfortable victory appeared all but certain.

At the finish, Bronski Beat's winning margin was just half-a-length to runner-up True Detective while He Shall Power confirmed he'll be a force to be reckoned with over the staying journey, just another three-quarters away in third.

The winning time was 41.86.

Bronski Beat's rise to group 1 glory from relative obscurity is a major boon for Brendan Pursell who has been training up a storm in recent months.

Enjoying outstanding results with the team at his Lara kennels, the former Tasmanian mentor has worked wonders with Bronski Beat, his Sandown Cup success the tenth win of his 30 start career.

Meanwhile, earlier on Thursday night's card Simon Told Helen proved he's as tough as he is brilliant with a narrow victory in the GR8 Eight event (515m).

Following a tardy getaway, David Burnett's superstar sprinter charged through to assume the lead before staving off the late challenge of Tiggerlong Tonk and Mepunga Pegasus in the narrowest of finishes.