Reality not Fantasy...

"Battler who upstaged Gai's superstars"

He trains just three horses, they call him the horse whisperer and he humbled the might of the Gai Waterhouse and John Hawkes stables to win the Group I $600,000 Epsom Handicap (1400m) at Randwick yesterday.

His name is Bruce Cross, a humble man who has waited more than a generation to win at racing's highest level. "I've just hung in there over the years, working hard and hoping for the best," Cross said. "Somewhere along the line, if you work hard enough, you'll have your day. I guess today is mine."

Cross was reduced to tears after Final Fantasy swamped his rivals to win the Epsom. It was a dream come true for Cross, who prefers a hands-on approach to training. Cross is the ultimate horseman. When it comes to the thoroughbred, there is little he does not know.

A meticulous trainer, Cross is also a renowned horse breaker, track rider and has a good grasp of veterinary science as well. As a measure of his methodical planning, Cross was the first trainer to ask the AJC for permission to gallop Final Fantasy on the inner track to test whether the horse could handle the controversial surface.

It all came together for Cross yesterday when Final Fantasy ($51) powered home to win the Epsom by one & a quarter lengths from Waterhouse's Kingsgate ($17) and the first of the Crown Lodge horses, Crawl ($19). The Hawkes-trained Hire was fourth, just ahead of Kingsgate's stablemate On Type.

Cross, 46, was swamped by well-wishers and couldn't even make it to the winner's stall. Moved to tears, Cross preferred to praise the ride of jockey Mark De Montfort, the loyalty of owner Malcolm Chung and the friendship and advice he has received from racing identities such as former jockey Norm Munsie and fellow Warwick Farm trainers.

"Mark De Montfort is a great big-race jockey, he has proved it again today," Cross said. "And I've got a lot to thank Malcolm Chung for. He has been with me for a long time, we've had some good times and some bad and to win this race for him means so much to me. Really, it's not my day, it's Malcolm Chung's day."
 

Mark De Montfort swoops down the outside on Final Fantasy to claim the First Epsom Victory for himself & trainer Bruce Cross

Cross first took out his trainer's licence 25 years ago when he was still based at Cowra. In less than 12 months he shifted his training base to Sydney, setting up stables at Canterbury before moving to Warwick Farm. "I can remember when I first came to the city, Norm Munsie pulling me aside and giving me advice. Norm's made me the trainer I am," Cross said. "And I've never forgotten one of the first things he told me - always trust your horse. If you've done everything else right, then trust your horse. Coming into this race we'd crossed all our t's, dotted all our i's, so it was up to Final Fantasy. In the end he was good enough."

There was speculation the AJC could invoke its special discretionary powers to include some more fancied runners in the Epsom field earlier in the week. Horses such as Make Mine Magic and Brave Prince were outside the final 14-hourse cut-off and one of the qualified runners mentioned as possibly being cut was Final Fantasy.