Saturday’s $100,000 Listed Scenic Blast Stakes at Ascot is named after a modern great of Australian racing.
The Scenic gelding amassed eight wins, eight seconds and four thirds from 31 career starts with stake earnings of $2,122,046.
Scenic Blast debuted at Ascot in 2007 and succeeded at his very first start with victory in the Listed Supremacy Stakes (1100m).
His signature wins came in 2009 when he won a Group 1 trifecta in the Lightning Stakes (1000m) and Newmarket Handicap (1200m) at Flemington before taking out the King’s Stand Stakes (1000m) at Royal Ascot in England.
Trained at Ascot by Dan Morton, Scenic Blast’s outstanding achievements at home and abroad was recognized when he was crowned Australian Horse of the Year in 2009.
Three years later he became the 10th horse to be inducted into the Western Australian Racing Industry Hall Of Fame.
He had six starts on home soil in Perth for two wins and four placings including the Group 2 Karrakatta Plate (1200m), Group 3 Hyperion Stakes (1400m) and Listed Perth Stakes (1100m).
Scenic Blast ran his final race in 2012 when unplaced behind Sea Siren in the Group One Doomben 10,000 in Brisbane.
Since retirement Scenic Blast has held court as the star attraction at Racing and Wagering Western Australia’s (RWWA) Off The Track Programme, a home for retired thoroughbred and standardbreds.
RWWA: Julio Santarelli