Samantha Miss Focuses on Victoria Oaks

The Melbourne Cup Carnival, or Spring Festival, is being hosted by Flemington Racecourse this year, and one of the most popular races featured during this time, is the Victoria Oaks. It takes place on the 6th of November 2008 and is run over a distance of 2,500 meters. The Victoria Oaks is a racing event for three year old fillies, and trainer Kris Lees has confirmed that Samantha Miss will be in the lineup for the race. With a purse of $1 million, this Grade 1 race has drawn a lot of attention, and Samantha Miss will be up against a tough competitor field.

Samantha Miss has shown herself to be a phenomenal racehorse and a tough competitor. With her first career start in March, she worked her way through the year unbeaten, before having to settle for a third place finish in the Cox Plate. Her trainer, Kris Lees, was ecstatic with her performance, saying that just being able to move from the start of a horse racing career to the Cox Plate in a matter of months was already an achievement on its own. And to finish third amongst an experienced field of contenders, was more than he could have hoped for.

Many believe that it is her inexperience that contributed to her third place finish. She was strong throughout the race, but on the last turn she wobbled a little and veered wide. Taking a bit of time to find her feet again and settle down, she immediately began chasing down the race leader and did well in closing the gap and maintaining her position. Unfortunately, the mistake allowed Maldivian to take first place and Zipping second.

When looking at past performances of other championship fillies, such as Miss Finland who finished in sixth place during the 2006 Cox Plate, but won the Victoria Oaks shortly thereafter, there is a good chance that Samantha Miss will be able to shine on the 6th of November. No other races have been scheduled for her before then, as Lees wants his star performer to be well rested and prepared when she gets to the Flemington Racecourse.