Exciting gallopers kick off their season
Three exciting gallopers kick off their season at two venues this weekend as Spring racing continues to warm up.
Prince Mambo, adjudged the second highest weighted horse on the recently released Two-Year-Old Free Handicaps, commences a campaign this Saturday which will culminate in the Group 1, $400,000 Two Thousand Guineas at Riccarton on the 8th of November.
He races in the Listed Westbury Stud Challenge Stakes over 1200 metres at Whangarei with incumbent jockey Danielle Johnson in the saddle. He has drawn wide in barrier 7 which is no help and the 1200 metres will also be well short of where his best distance will lie this season. He has trialled well in preparation and to see him hitting the line strongly will give us a lot of confidence for his upcoming races.
At Awapuni we see the re-emergence of two talented three-year-olds from last season, Thorn Pass and Mighty Solomon. Both horses won two races last term, with Thorn Pass most recently racing in The Derby before going for a spell. They race in the Rating 75 1200 metres, a distance which should suit Mighty Solomon more than Thorn Pass, but Thorn Pass has drawn barrier 1 and Mighty Solomon wide, which tips the scales in Thorn Pass’ favour. Both horses will go over more ground than 1200 metres this campaign and good fresh-up runs are all that we are looking for on Saturday.
The talented North And South races in the Group 3 Merial Metric Mile worth $70,000 and while she has drawn wide in barrier 16, this is not of a concern because of her racing pattern. What is of more of a concern is the state of the track. She races well on a good and dead surface, but grows another leg when the track gets to slow and heavy. If the rain comes it will bring her into contention, but if it stays away it will make it a difficult race to win. Not many horses win 7 races from 18 starts and she is not short on ability. Chris Johnson rides and he should suit her well.
Our final runner on the day is Sadlers Rock in the Rating 85 2100 metres with Vinny Colgan in the saddle. A talented stayer, he is preparing for The New Zealand Cup and is just 2nd up in this campaign. He loves hard tracks but isn’t as adept on wet tracks and will improve significantly with this run under his belt.