City Of Lights goes two from three

City Of Lights has claimed her second victory in a handy Benchmark 72 at Randwick-Kensington on Wednesday, just days after her mother, famed broodmare Vegas Showgirl, passed away.

The half-sister to Winx is now two wins from three starts and looked very sharp winning the 1550-metre contest, settling much closer than in her previous runs.

After a bump in the home straight, jockey Chad Schofield threw everything he had at his mount, but City Of Lights ($2.70) didn’t look like winning until the final 100 metres, when she got a second wind and knuckled down to score.

The interference made for a messy head-on replay, but with arguably the unluckiest horse, John Sargent’s Harlow Mist, finishing in third, there was no danger of a protest.

Schofield said the gutsy nature of the win was a credit to the horse, who he said had been taken well off her course by another runner.

“I got her working through her gears and then the horse that ran second barged its way out and interfered with me a little bit,” he said.

“I had to rebalance her, but to her credit she really knuckled under riding and she was really strong to the line.”

He said the extra distance had him bullish for the event and he expects his mount to improve rapidly with even more ground.

“I came in here today confident she’d relish the rise in trip … she travelled very kindly for me,” he said.

“She just helps herself in the run, she’s very relaxed, she switches off and she’s got a good finish.

“I think so (to 2000 metres) … she’s a beautiful filly, obviously impeccably bred.”