Velvet Upstages The Boys In Hume Cup Blitz

ASTON Velvet went into Saturday night's Hume Cup Final (600m) as the only female in the field and she came out of it with a much deserved group 1 victory under her belt.

Beginning in perfect fashion from her box five draw, Aston Velvet ran her rivals into the ground to land the $75,000 first prize, covering the 600 metre journey in a slick 34.52.

Trained by Michelle Mallia, the Hume Cup was Aston Velvet's third crack at group glory, having finished third in the Group 1 Sandown Cup in May, while finishing down the track in September's Group 3 Top Cat Video Cup also.

Ironically, Aston Velvet has drawn box five in each of her three group race finals, with the squeeze draw meaning little in the Hume Cup decider following a faultless beginning from the ultra consistent galloper.

Only adding to the performance, Aston Velvet's dashing Hume Cup triumph provided late sire Aston Kimetto with his first group 1 victory.

? HUME CUP FINAL ?

ASTON VELVET (5) triumphs in the $121,500 Group 1 #HumeCup Final at @MelbourneGreys in 34.254 seconds for trainer Michelle Mallia.#GreyhoundRacing #DreamChasers pic.twitter.com/YH674BfVFY

— WatchDog Racing (@WatchDogRacing) November 5, 2022

Illness tragically claimed the life of the former powerhouse chaser early last year but not before he could leave a significant imprint on the Australian breeding scene.

Owner Ray Borda has shown enormous faith in using the late stud dog on some of his most coveted bitches with the reward a group 1 victory with Aston Velvet at The Meadows on Saturday night.

Finishing second in the Hume Cup decider was Queenslander Pocket Money for trainer Ned Snow while Wheel And Go claimed third for trainer Tim Britton.

Saturday night's Hume Cup success took Aston Velvet's prizemoney to $275,203 from her 16 career wins.