Scone open for refuge
The Scone Race Club has opened its raceday stalls for anyone in the region who needs to move their horses to higher ground to avoid flooding and heavy rainfall.
Akecheta wins Wodonga Cup
The Peter Moody-trained Akecheta (So You Think {NZ}) reigned supreme in Friday’s $100,000 Wodonga Gold Cup on a testing Heavy 10 surface.
Ridden by Jason Benbow, Akecheta finished 0.2l ahead of the Michael Moroney Rainbow Thief (NZ) (Rock ‘N’ Pop) and 0.3l of Mitchell Freedman-trained top weight Ho Ho Khan (NZ) (Makfi {GB}) in the 1590-metre feature.
Enthaar set to star
David Eustace expects speedy filly Enthaar (Written Tycoon) to display her newfound ‘controlled brilliance’ in Saturday’s Listed Doveton S. at Caulfield.
Eustace, who trains Enthaar in partnership with Ciaron Maher, said the boom Emirates Park-owned filly has learned to harness her speed at home and has improved since finishing third behind a match fit Profiteer (Capitalist) at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day.
Enthaar
“The draws (barrier 11) obviously not ideal but she can easily get across although at the same time we don’t want to rush and have her overdo it early,” Eustace told RSN.
“So, with a good ride I expect her to run really well but she hasn’t improved much since she was a 2-year-old as she was more mature than her rivals early on but those performances are good enough for her to win with 54kgs on Saturday.”
Freedman sends Warning to rivals
Sam Freedman has warned rivals about the quality of proven stayer Warning (Declaration Of War {USA}) ahead of Saturday’s G2 Zipping Classic at Caulfield.
Freedman, who trains the G1 Victoria Derby hero in partnership with his father Anthony, said front-running tactics will again be deployed after they proved a winning move in the G3 Queen Elizabeth S. at Flemington on Stakes Day.
Warning
“If that horse (Spanish Mission) turns up at his best, then we probably are racing for second, but the Melbourne Cup can be quite taxing, and we’ve seen plenty of imports run a very good race first-up off the plane and then they can sometimes regress,” Freedman told Racenet.
“Our horse is in terrific form, we couldn’t be happier with him, and we’re there to give him a run for his money.”
Trip to suit Soldier
David Payne has decided to test Blue Soldier’s (USA) (War Front {USA}) credentials on the back-up in Saturday’s Listed ATC Cup at Rosehill.
The 5-year-old, who finished 3.75l sixth behind high-class galloper in the $1 million The Gong is crying out for 2000 metres, according to Payne.
“We’ve worked him out. I think he’s going to be a much better horse over more ground so the 2000 metres will suit him this weekend,” Payne told Racenet.
“I think he’s just looking for the 2000 metres after a very good run in The Gong. He’ll go to this race now then head out for a spell.”
Wet remains a worry
Tim Donnelly is hoping the wet weather forecast doesn’t put a dampener on the undefeated record of Participator (NZ) (Contributer {Ire}) when he steps out in Saturday’s TAB Highway H. at Rosehill.
The NZ$95,000 2020 New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale graduate has won both of his starts for the Wagga Wagga-based horseman but will meet a Heavy surface for the first time this weekend.
“He is out of a More Than Ready mare, so that gives me a little bit of confidence (that he will handle it) but you don’t really know until they are put under pressure under race conditions,” Donnelly said.
“If it was a Good track, I would be very confident. I think he has got a lot of improvement in him from his previous start.”
Eptimum continues revival
Former Hong Kong galloper Eptimum (Snitzel) continued the resurrection of his racing career when taking out the Clare Memorial Central Otago Cup at Cromwell on Friday.
The 7-year-old gelding was quick out of the gates and settled outside leader Spring Blossom (Epaulette) before kicking clear and withstanding the late challenge of Goodanya (NZ) (Zacinto {GB}) to prevail by 0.75l.
Eptimum | Image courtesy of NZ Racing Desk
“I knew he was pretty smart, but to see him win today was great. I will see how he comes through today and if we don’t have any rain, I might look at Sunday,” trainer John Blackadder said.
“He will probably head to something like the (Listed) Hazlett at Wingatui on Boxing Day.”
Djelo tops Auctav November Sale
Winning 3-year-old gelding Djelo (Fr) (Montmartre {Fr}) brought top billing at Wednesday’s Auctav November Sale when knocked down to bloodstock agent Guy Petit for €140,000 (AU$220,000).
“We are delighted with the great sale of Djelo, we could see that the Auctav concept had really been successful because of its flexibly between monthly sales, wild cards and flash sales,” Auctav Managing Director Arnaud Angeliaume told TDN Europe.
Djelo (Fr) | Image courtesy of Auctav
“The Auctav app, launched last week, had its first test. It worked well in real time and we are really very happy with this innovation which will further facilitate the customer experience.”
