Team Zav was left with an enviable TAB Eureka quandary after both War Dan Buddy and Fox Dan scored impressive wins at Melton on Saturday night.
Sent out a $3.30 favorite, War Dan Buddy settled midfield in the running line before putting his rivals to the sword, blasting through the back straight quarter in a slick 26.9 and opening up a winning break around the home turn.
The win completed back-to-back successes for the four-year-old, who scored at Menangle a fortnight ago in a mile rate of 1:50.5.
“The horse is in great form and the team have done a great job with him,” driver Ryan Sanderson said after the race.
“The tempo was kept pretty consistent and he was able to peel off and run a good last half pretty wide on the track. He’s run a 1:52 mile off the track, which is pretty impressive,” he said.
An hour later, the Team Zav-owned three-year-old Fox Dan enhanced his Eureka credentials in emphatic fashion when he outclassed his rivals in the Hip Pocket Pace.
After sitting parked for the final lap of the race, Fox Dan ($2.50 fav) left the opposition in his wake with 500 metres to travel and cruised to the line, holding an eight-metre margin over Surfingmakescents and Forty Love.
Ryan acknowledged both War Dan Buddy and Fox Dan are worth serious consideration to represent the Team Zav slot in next month’s $2.1m TAB Eureka at Menangle.
“I think Danny (Zavitsanos) and the team have a hard job picking which one they want to choose for the Eureka,” Sanderson said.
“He was really good. I’ve only driven him the once, and when he gets in open air he can switch off a bit, but tonight he was just great running a solid 2200 and did it well,” he said.
The win completed a driving treble for Sanderson and a training treble for Emma Stewart, who combined to win the first three races on the program.
