If No Compromise had not found a way to win the Metropolitan in a spine-tingling finish, it would have been the second hard luck story for his dam Baggy Green in the 2022 edition of the group 1.
On Tuesday, the long-time favourite Benaud, who shares a mother with No Compromise, didn’t accept because of inadvertently being given an anti-inflammatory, which would not be out of his system before the race.
Tommy Berry celebrates on No Compromise.Credit:Getty
No Compromise looked for much of the straight to be unlucky as well. He had travelled like the winner but breaks were going against him.
Jockey Tommy Berry searched for a run and finally drove through on the inside to score by a nose from Le Don De Vie with Realm Of Flowers another nose away in third. Both the placegetters had been part of No Compromise’s problems in the run.
“He was travelling really well early, got into a nice spot. The Freedman horse (Realm Of Flowers) outside me was just annoying me a little bit so I’m glad when he pressed on and got outside Stockman, it just got my bloke into a good rhythm,” Berry said.
“I was bolting coming to the corner and when James [McDonald – rider of second horse Le Don De Vie] shifted out in front of me I thought it was all over.”
Berry changed course back to the inside halfway down the straight, but kept his momentum going to land the prize in a slugging finish.
“It’s amazing the wave of emotions that go through your body. Coming to the corner I just felt like the winner, I was just going through my gears,” Berry said. “At the 200m there when James shifted out on my line I thought it was all over.
“He did an unbelievable job to pick himself up and get there. But Chris Waller, he’s just a freak isn’t he? Group 1 day and he’s here.”
No Compromise could follow his half-brother Benaud to Melbourne for the Caulfield Cup, now he is a group 1 winner.
No Compromise wins the Metropolitan at Randwick.Credit:Getty
“He might need to grow a few lengths over the next few weeks to do that. We won’t disappoint anyone. We will enjoy the win, albeit a narrow one,” trainer Chris Waller said.
“It’s a great family from New Zealand behind him. It’s a special win. He’s been building up to that. He’s been a bit unlucky but not today.
“He doesn’t like the real wet tracks, but today, even though it’s heavy, they are getting through it better than they were in the autumn and that was a help to him and I think that 2400m is the cap on his distance range as he showed today.”
