Last Updated on 13 November 2023
Karavas, a two-year-old filly trained by Richard and Chantelle Jolly, won the 1000-meter Ottawa Stakes on Oaks Dayat Flemington on Thursday. The father-daughter duo won the Group 3 race with See You Heaven two years ago and have done that again with the daughter of Alabama Express this year.
Karavas building on her debut win at Murray Bridge to win again and make it two out of two didn’t surprise her trainers. However, what surprised Richard Jolly were the unusually high odds of $9 bookies gave her.
Despite the generous odds, Karavas defeated favourite Eneeza ($4.20) by a length and was better than third-placed Arabian Summer, priced at $7.
People Disregarded Karavas’ Form
Jolly said that after two-year-olds have had their first start, they often improve. So, with Karavas winning on her debut, it was to be expected that she would build on that and be even better in her next race. The South Australian trainer added that “the knockers” disregarded the smart filly’s form, hence the good odds.
Jolly praised Karavas, saying she was a more natural two-year-old than their previous Ottawa Stakes winner, See You Heaven, who has built on her 2021 Oaks Day and raced “well as a two-year-old.”
However, the trainer added that the smart Karavas was “probably a bit more precocious” than See You Heaven, and he felt she was more of “a sprinting type,” so they would probably aim for some autumn riches with her.
The Jolly Stable Always Places Horses Well
Watching Karavas salute at Flemington was the first win for trainer Chantelle Jolly on the legendary racing ground. She said that their stable “got the right horses in” and had high hopes for Karavas at the Ottawa Stakes for a long time, so it was great for the smart filly to show them “how professional” she was.
Karavas was ridden to victory by jockey Jake Toeroek, who was also impressed by the “beautiful” and “lovely filly” with “a great attitude.”
He commended the Jolly stable for always placing their horses well, adding that together they showed people what they had and predicted great things for the filly next year.
