Repossession gave another reminder of his class when he bounced back from a setback to win the Listed Beaufine Stakes (1000m) at Pinjarra on Saturday.
Staring a dominant $2.10 favourite, Repossession, under Brad Parnham, fought off Toropa to score by ¾ of a length with Sinful Living holding third after leading.
Showing a liking for the Pinjarra straight for a second time this campaign, Repossession completed a winning hat trick and vindicated a chaotic week for co-trainer, Chris Gangemi.
A foot abscess forced the son of Sessions to miss a 1200m event at Pinjarra last Saturday and Gangemi was uncertain if the gelding would be at his best to line up in the Beaufine.
It’s the third Beaufine Stakes victory for Gangemi, who shares the training duties with his brother, Michael, after Durendal (2018) and Rock Magic (2015) posted respective wins.
It's early days but Gangemi and his brother are devoted fans of Repossession and believe he has the potential to jump an even higher bar when he comes back for the Ascot carnival.
Gangemi said the manner in which Repossession was able to handle and absorb a difficult lead in is a positive sign he has the makings of being an above average horse.
“He’s a good horse, Gangemi said.
“I haven’t had one this good for a long time.
“He’s dealt with some crap in the last week.
“Even once the abscess blew out, he was still pretty sore on his heel.
“For him to deal with that, miss some work, his heel a bit tender, and still win, he’s a really exciting horse.
“I was sort of 50-50 whether to start him or not, and even to gallop him on the Tuesday, but I’m glad we did now.
"He'll go to the paddock now."
A $62,500 yearling, Repossession is close to half a million dollars in earnings after collecting five wins from seven starts, the Beaufine his first victory in stakes company.
He shapes as the next rising star for the Gangemi brothers and the best horse they've had their hands on since Rock Magic, a cult hero that took the stable to top heights.
Gangemi is convinced Repossession is on the right path and has an exciting future in front of him, but any likening to Rock Magic and reaching his status is premature.
“You should never compare him to Rock Magic,” Gangemi said.
“He has a long, long, long way to go to be half as good as him.
“But he’s definitely the smartest young horse we’ve probably ever had.
“I think that’s just the start of a very good career hopefully.”
Repossession flew the flag for the Gangemi’s with stable mate, Phanta running seventh
Parnham, who wasted hard to ride Repossession at 54kg, kept on going with a running double after booting home Timeless Gem.
Parnham went from villain to hero with Timeless Gem trained by Stephen Miller, who also is in charge of Beaufine Stakes runner up, Toropa.
Julio Santarelli