Zouologist wins 2021 Bathurst RSL Club Soldier's Saddle after finishing runner-up in previous edition

After running a distant runner-up to Hit The Target in the 2020 saddle there was no stopping Tara and Philippe Vigouroux's Zouologist ($6.50) this time around as he led the entire trip under the guidance of Mikayla Weir.

Zouologist came across from the widest draw and showed plenty of fight to hold off late challenges from race favourite O'Mudgee ($2.70, Brandon Lerena) and Lolita Gold ($17, Simon Miller).

It was a satisfying breakthrough moment for Weir who had previously ridden Zouologist to three runner-up results in her past four rides on the Zoustar gelding.

The Vigouroux runner had been racing in strong company, having journeyed to Bathurst after tough runs in back-to-back $150,000 Provincial Championship events, and the five-year-old certainly appreciated the drop back in grade.

Weir never went out with any major intentions of finding the front but when the opportunity presented itself she wasn't going to say no.

"I was confident towards the end and felt that he was going to hold his ground late. I knew that they were coming though and that they were coming quite quickly," she said.

"We started wide so we thought that there were going to be a few that would kick up. We thought we might either lead, sit off the lead or get in behind them. It just depends on how he begins.

"It was good to find the front though, especially with his race form for me at Canterbury in his last prep. It ended up playing into my hands because they just left me alone in front."

Zouologist briefly found a two length break in the early stages when Weir's early push forward strung out the field.

Commute worked ahead along the rail to sit second and O'Mudgee was tucked away in third.

Lolita Gold went down the inside of O'Mudgee to face alongside the favourite, with local chance Speed Camera forced to work forward after being caught wide in the early stages.

As the pace picked up Not Negotiating went four wide in a bid to challenge the leaders.

O'Mudgee was boxed in on the turn for home and was forced to duck wide around both Commute and Speed Camera to try and play catch up with the runaway Zouologist.

Weir's gelding had got away to a break of several lengths over Lolita Gold and it was going to take something huge for anyone to reel Zouologist in.

O'Mudgee almost delivered on that challenge, delivering a powerful final sprint across the last 100m.

He came up just under a length short of taking down the 2020 runner-up.

If O'Mudgee had found a shorter and cleaner trip over the last 400m of racing it could have been Bjorn Baker instead celebrating saddle success.

Weir is keen to see what Zouologist will achieve next.

"He'll probably go back into the provincials from here, I'd say, and he'd probably head back in trip too," she said.

"The 1,400m seems to really stretch him out. An open 1,200m might be ideal."

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