Pikachu was the subject of a great blinker debate between the jockey and trainer before winning the Peninsula Golden Jubilee Challenge Cup but he might have settled it himself after making everyone sweat through a closer-than-expected finish.
Pikachu never really looked like losing in the run to the home turn under Neil Callan and that quickly became never really looked like putting them away as he should when the race got serious for the short-priced favourite.
"I really thought he would win more comfortably than that," said trainer David Ferraris when the nose margin was posted. "Neil wanted to put blinkers on him for this race and I resisted but, after seeing that, he'll probably have to have half cup blinkers next time when he goes up to Class Two."
The warning signs were there after Pikachu had to "go back and weave through" from a wide draw at his previous start and Callan had trouble getting the gelding to come to the outside of horses.
"It's not malicious, he isn't ungenuine, it's just that he's still learning the game and he wasn't quite getting the gist of what he was supposed to do," Callan said. "He is such a relaxed, lazy horse, I had to chase him along early today to stay in touch with them. He came off the bridle before the home turn then had to grind it out and I feel that he'd have done it all a bit easier in blinkers. He's only just doing enough at the moment, not giving you everything."
After swinging around to Callan's way of thinking, Ferraris said the only proviso would be a consideration of distance.
"I'd like him to stay at 1,400m and put the blinkers on but if we have to go to a mile to find a race for him - and I'm confident he'll run a mile - then probably the blinkers would have to wait," he said.
Callan took himself to 21 wins for the season later down the straight when Derek Cruz-trained Lovely Delovely put a lie to his poor run as favourite last month.
"He is a narrow, skinny sort of horse and his body weight fell away leading into that race," said Cruz. "I freshened him up, put some weight back on him and he was back to his best."
Callan confirmed that, saying the sprinter had been chalk and cheese under him in his win in October and his last failure.
"The day he won with me, he flew across from a bad draw in gate two and did some work and won, then last time he drew better but just felt flat and never travelled," Callan said. "Derek's done a great job with him and when I took him down to the start today, I could feel he had a right spring in his step again."
