The Boss Lady exacts revenge through Mist to take Jungle Dawn in second leg of mares’ series at Ascot

After multiple runner-up efforts in Listed company, talented mare The Boss Lady finished over the top to win her first black-type event in the $125,000 Ascend Trophies Jungle Dawn Classic (1400m) at Ascot. The daughter of Street Boss ($3.90 TABtouch) was taken back to the second half of the field by jockey Chris Parnham as Baby Paris ($3.10), attempting to complete the second leg of the mares’ series after winning the Jungle Mist a fortnight ago, again assumed command. Parnham positioned the mare down on the rail and seven lengths from the lead by the 800m as Baby Paris ramped up the pace, endeavouring to break her rivals hearts. With most off the bit in pursuit by the 500m, Parnham hadn’t budged on The Boss Lady who coasted into the home bend and peeled four-deep around the heels of stablemate Rusty Dreams ($26). The four-year-old began to let rip down the outside as Antique Miss ($18) reached the front inside the last 200m. Though looming, The Boss Lady had a devilish task of wearing down the gallant Antique Miss, only overcoming her in the final 50m as her class started to show. The margin on the line was a neck, with Bonjoy ($12) ripping home nearer the fence to clinch third place after sitting last throughout. It was a superb result for Michael Lane’s training operation, with fellow home-bred Rusty Dreams finishing fourth. “She’s a super little mare for us. I’ve probably said it a million times, but we bred her and the other mare Rusty Dreams, so they’re both very close to our heart and it’s a great result here for our stable,” Lane said. “My other half Stacey does all the work on them, so it’s a special effort.” Now a winner of seven from just 14 starts, Lane credited much of the mare’s success to regular rider Chris Parnham. “As soon as (Chris) came back from Melbourne, I said we need to have a stable rider and he sticks as much as he can and I stick always, basically,” Lane said. “It was a great ride today and Chris gives us great feedback all the time. “Jockeys like Chris and these top jockeys, they’re invaluable to us and in trials as well he’s very important and does a lot of work behind the scenes.” Lane indicated that whilst Rusty Dreams would persevere with the mares’ series rising to 1600m in another fortnight, The Boss Lady would tread a different path. “I think that’s as far as she wants to go (1400m), so we’ll look for another option for her,” Lane said. “She’s nominated for the Gold Rush, so we’ll let the dust settle and see what happens.” While her barrier manners have occasionally come under question, the additional distance played into The Boss Lady’s hands after finishing second behind Baby Paris in the Jungle Mist. But Parnham concurred with trainer Lane, suggesting that the win today, her first over more than 1200m, had located her maximum trip. “She’s a little bit hard to get out - today obviously it didn’t matter as much because we got the job done - but I was certainly kicking myself after last start “1400m is probably as far as she wants, but she’s still quite effective at it and she’s got a nice turn of foot.” Parnham earlier saluted on Generosity ($5) for Simon Miller, downing Jokers Grin ($1.70) over the concluding stages.