On Friday night at Young, Oh I Am The One took out the Cherry Festival Cup (2,100 metres) with an all-the-way win for trainer-driver Steve Turnbull.

That not only made three cup wins – adding to the Group 3 Canola Cup and the Blayney Cup – but took his record since arriving in Australia to six victories and a second place from seven starts.

Naturally White is delighted.

“I am enjoying it. Don’t worry, there have been plenty of slow ones in between, so you do enjoy the nice horses,” he said.

“He’s just such a nice horse, he does everything right and he can race on big or small tracks, it doesn’t really worry him.

“He is tough, that is probably one of the main reasons why we bought him. The tapes of him over in New Zealand, one race in particular, horses just don’t do what he did in that race. We knew he was tough, but he’s turned out a lot better than we could have ever expected.”

Oh I Am The One is not the first success White has had in partnership with the Turn- bulls. Heza Thrill, a son of New Zealand champion Christian Cullen, picked up 18 wins and 12 placings.

But based on what the new acquisition has shown thus far, he has the potential to better that record.

“Amanda Turnbull picks them for us, so she’s obviously a good judge considering what she has done for me and Steve,” White said.

“No, I hadn’t predicted anything like this, but when Steve gets excited about a horse you generally think you might have a nice horse, because he’s had a lot of horses go through his stable, that’s for sure.

“I just enjoy it and wherever Steve and Amanda place it I am happy with. Whenever I make a recommendation they generally laugh at me, so I am happy to take their recommendations,” he added with a laugh.

Prior to the Cherry Festival Cup, Steve Turnbull had played down Oh I Am The One’s chances given the quality of some of his rivals.

However, punters backed the Gotta Go Cullen x Angel Hanover gelding into $1.30 favouritism and he lived up to that tag.

From barrier two he took the lead, and while he did face pressure during the journey, Chris Frisby’s Uncle Lile sitting on his shoulder with a lap to travel, Oh I Am The One always looked comfortable.

After a 28.7 seconds third sectional, Oh I Am The One gapped his rivals down the home straight. Turnbull took a number of glances over his shoulder, but he need not have worried.

The favourite clocked a 1:59.7 mile rate as he won by 4.2m over Uncle Lile ($19.90), with another 1.3m back to third-placed Ruato Bay ($16.90). 

“He started as the odds on favourite, but I think Steve said that to take the pressure off himself. He hadn’t won on the horse [since his first Australian start], so I think he just wanted to take the pressure off himself – we were giving it to him about it,” White said.

“It was good that he won it on it – that’s three cups in a row now. He said the horse felt enormous and felt a lot sharper than when he got beat in Bathurst – that’s very good to hear.

“He’s only a young horse, he’s only just turned four and he hasn’t had a lot of starts. To beat horses like Uncle Lile – he’s won over $200,000 and he’s been going real good – it’s very, very nice.”