First group win for trainer Esteban Brown and jockey Juan C. Rivarola

With Elenika in the G3 Andrés S. Torres, both professionals enjoyed a major milestone in their respective careers

Elenika gave her team a snapshot with a special touch / HLP

LA PLATA.- It’s not easy to win stakes races, and even more so for professionals with limited opportunities. That’s why, after Elenika’s victory in the G3 Andrés S. Torres on Tuesday in the south, trainer Esteban Brown and jockey Juan Cruz Rivarola were visibly delighted, as they marked the filly’s rise into the upper ranks of the local 2-year-old fillies' standings for Stud Hilda Juana.

For both, it was a special moment. The victory with the daughter of Winning Prize marked their first group win of their careers, coming just days after they had posed for a photo together with Boyero Spring (Greenspring) after winning the Clásico AP Candy.

In an interview with Daniel Sinegub for southern TV, Rivarola explained: "She’s really nice, young, 2 years old. The favorite scratched, and the race developed cleanly with only a few runners. They told me to ride her from behind, but by the 700-meter mark she started to look good, she was pulling me forward. When I asked her to run, she responded beautifully."

He added: "I’ve been riding her since the breaker gave her to me. She won on debut, then, not being at her best, she lost in the mud. But she improved, the trainer found the right way with her, she got past a few things, and showed she’s got what it takes and that she’s a real runner."

Visibly moved, Brown said: "These are very young fillies, they keep moving forward. She had won well, but it was 200 meters more. We pushed a bit, but the times were right, and we had to seize the moment. She’s running really well."

Near the end, with a choked voice, the trainer added: "We’re aiming to take her further, and today she showed us she’s ready for it. It was important that she ran calmly from the start because if you rush her, she’ll go; we saw that in the second race. Juan Cruz rode her perfectly, and it was the result of a team effort, alongside my son Cristian."

Elenika has now risen to the top among the 2-year-olds in the south, with a campaign handled with great care by Brownand Rivarola, who are seizing every opportunity to stand out and dream of going even further. They will continue working with her, looking to stretch her out in distance with an eye on the most important stakes races, which are not too far off.