Group 1 Glory For Magri In Paws Of Thunder

IN form trainer Jason Magri claimed the first group 1 of his flourishing training career with a captivating performance by King Cratos in the Group 1 Ladbrokes Paws Of Thunder (520m) at Wentworth Park on Friday night.

The Kemps Creek conditioner, who has been riding the crest of a winning wave recently, had King Cratos tuned to perfection for Friday night's $75,000 to-the-winner final.

Trailing across tearaway leader Caishen in the early stages from his box eight draw, King Cratos, a son of Sh Avatar and Zipping Rose, toughed out a gritty victory late in proceedings, staving off a fast finishing Feral Franky by a length in a sizzling 29.64.

Ironically, King Cratos finished runner-up to Feral Franky in the Group 3 New Sensation at Wentworth Park last April, before he went on to finish third to Sennachie in the Queensland Derby Final at Albion Park.

Magri, ably assisted by kennel foreman Luke Adams, has guided King Cratos, now a winner at 14 of his 26 starts, back from hip injuries suffered midway through last year when at the peak of his powers.

Returning to racing from five months on the sidelines with a stirring Maitland victory on January 2, King Cratos has proceeded to take out his heat and final of the Group 1 Paws Of Thunder, delivering Magri a deserved, and overdue Group 1 victory.

Before Friday night's group 1 break-through, Magri had finished runner-up in the ‘big dance' on three occasions.

Bad Boy Sniper finished second to Fernando Bale in the 2015 National Derby, while in 2017, Clock's Ticking finished runner-up to Shima Bar in the Paws of Thunder, the very race he landed on Friday night.

The most recent of Magri's close calls in group 1s was last November when Zipping Potter ran a spectacular second in the Hume Cup at The Meadows behind True Detective.

With Magri's training stocks continuing to rise, he now turns his attention to Richmond this Saturday night where prodigious talent Zipping Zeek takes his place, while at Bathurst on Monday, Zipping Byron and Black Rampage line-up in the Orange Cup Final.

Busy times indeed.