Within The Law (AUS)
2 f Lucky Vega – Contract Signed by Dundeel
O: Darby Racing, Mr A J Barsby, Ms S G Davis, Mr J Lucas, Mr D McWilliams, Mr M Newman, Mr G M Olsson, Mr W E Payne, Mr B Sumner, Mr R G Tait, Mr R C Walker, Mr M G Wilson, Darby Racing – Contract Signed
B: Yulong Investments Yulong Stud
T: Bjorn Baker
S: 2024 Inglis Classic Yearling Sale V: Yulong P: Darby Racing, $30,000
W: Inglis Banner, RL, 1000m, November 9, Flemington
Within The Law (Lucky Vega) looks a filly with a big future as she made an instant impression on debut when landing the Inglis Banner (RL, 1000m) at Flemington on Saturday.
Becoming the first individual stakes winner and second individual winner for Yulong’s first-season shuttler Lucky Vega (Lope De Vega), the Bjorn Baker-trained filly jumped well from barrier ten to settle behind the pace before quickening at the 200-metre mark to comfortably defeat favourite Chisholm (I Am Invincible) by 1.25 lengths, with Rohesia (Hanseatic) a further 0.75 lengths away in third.
“It’s great to win it with a progressive two-year-old for Darby [Racing, owners],” Baker told Racing.com.“She’s been just amazing. No nonsense, no fuss, straightforward. Josh Parr actually rode her on track work on Tuesday and he said, ‘Look, she went well enough to have a crack’.”
Winning rider Ben Melham was pleased with how the filly handled her first raceday outing, in front of a 62,000 strong crowd on Champions Day.
“A lot comes down to how they handle the big days and she looked well educated,” he said. “She made significant improvement from her first trial to her second trial and she got beaten by a smart one in her second trial. She did everything right and that takes them a long way in these early two-year-old races.”
Bred by Yulong, Within The Law was purchased by Darby Racing for $30,000 out of the Victorian-based operation’s draft at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale earlier this year.
She is the first foal to race out of the placed Dundeel (High Chaparral) mare Contract Signed, and her third dam So Gorgeous (Brief Truce) who won five stakes races including the VRC Ascot Vale Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m).
Contract Signed was bought by Chatsworth Farm for $30,000 via the 2021 Inglis Digital September Sale, and now has a yearling colt by Yulong’s Tagaloa (Lord Kanaloa) and was covered last spring by Written Tycoon (Iglesia).