But his form then took a serious dive and, after several failures, his owners decided enough was enough and offered him for sale on Gavelhouse in January this year.
Campbell had seen the potential in Rum and decided to bid up, finally securing him for $12,500. He now races the gelding in partnership with former Hastings trainer Dean Smith, who helps out in the Campbell stable and drives the horse float to and from race meetings.
Campbell said it has taken time to work Rum out since taking him over and has realised that he is a horse that resents being restrained in his races.
“You just have to let do his own thing,” Campbell said.
“If you try to hold him up or fight him he doesn’t want to know and just throws it in.”
With this in mind Campbell instructed jockey Mereana Hudson to let the horse roll to the front in Tuesday’s 1400m race and then ride him on a long rein, letting him basically do his own thing.
Hudson followed the instructions to a tee and had Rum travelling strongly in front all the way. The horse had a two-length break on the field rounding the home turn and kept up a strong run to the line to score by 1-1/2 lengths from Ivy Dazzler.
Hudson had trouble pulling the horse up after the race and it took them several minutes to return to the birdcage.
“I thought he was going to take me around again,” Hudson said afterwards.
“I just let him do his own thing in the race but the worst part was trying to pull him up. He was a real handful.”
Telegraph Sprint now the target
Talented Hastings-trained sprinter Can I Get An Amen will now have another crack at the Group 1 $350,000 Telegraph Sprint (1200m) at Trentham following a return to winning form in a $40,000 Rating 87 race at Otaki on Monday.
The Hallowed Crown 6-year-old, prepared by Guy Lowry, was recording her fifth victory but her first since she took out the Listed Lightning Handicap (1200m) at Trentham back in March.
Can I Get An Amen followed up that win with a seventh placing in another Listed 1200m race at Hastings in April before being turned out for a spell.
She was having her third start back, in a new campaign, when she lined up over 1200m at Otaki on Monday after recording sixth placings at Riccarton last month and at Trentham earlier this month.
The mare obviously needed those two runs and stripped a lot fitter at Otaki.
She began awkwardly from the barrier but jockey Kate Hercock was able to keep her contact with the bulk of the field and then picked a path between horses in the home straight.
Can I Get An Amen wanted to lay in over the final stages but still proved too strong over the final stages and scored by 1-1/4 lengths.
Lowry has had the Group 1 Telegraph Sprint in mind for Can I Get An Amen after the mare finished a game fourth in last year’s weight-f-age feature behind the outstanding sprinters Levante, Roch ‘N’ Horse and Mascarpone. She will now go straight into that race on January 14.
Lowry is keen to pick up as much black type as he can with Can I Get An Amen before the mare is retired to stud.
Can I Get An Amen is owned by prominent Cambridge owner-breeder Tony Rider in partnership with three Auckland people, Rayna and Lyn Bonnington and Peter Jeffares. The quartet bred the mare after buying a service to the Australian-based stallion Hallowed Crown at a charity auction in Queenstown in 2015.
Can I Get An Amen is out of the Sudurka mare Brianna, who was herself the winner of five races, including one at Listed stakes level.
Jameson finally produces
Hastings-trained Jameson was fast running out of chances to show some form when he lined up in a maiden 2100m race at Woodville on Tuesday and duly delivered, scoring a length win over the race favourite Minnie Mouse.
Jameson is prepared by the partners Paul Nelson and Corrina McDougal and was having his 16th start, with his best previous placings being a second and four thirds.
“He’d been running good races but not finishing them off and I think this was his last chance,” McDougal said after the win.
He had beaten only one other runner home over 1950m at Rotorua at his most recent start, back on November 30, and that followed a fair fifth over 1600m at Woodville earlier that month.
Both of those starts were on rain-affected tracks and the horse obviously appreciated the good-4 track conditions at Woodville.
The 5-year-old Reliable Man gelding was caught three-wide without cover for much of the race but kicked on strongly under the urgings of jockey Sarah O’Malley.
Jameson is owned by Waikato-based Stu Dromgool, along with several of his family members and friends.
Dromgool has bred and raced horses for many years, with one of his best in recent times being The Shackler, who was the winner of 13 races.
Paul Nelson trained The Shackler when the horse embarked on a jumping career towards the end of his racing career and produced him to win the 2017 Wellington Hurdle and both the Waikato Hurdles and K S Browne Hurdle in 2018.
Uderzo looks extra smart
The colours of Havelock North couple Sam and Birdie Kelt were back in the winner’s stall at Monday’s Pukekohe meeting when Uderzo scored an impressive victory in a $70,000 Rating 65 race over 1400m.
The 4-year-old Vadamos gelding was having only his fourth start and has now won two races after also scoring on debut over 1200m at Matamata back in March.
Trained by the Matamata partnership of Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott, Uderzo was ridden to perfection on Monday by in-form South African-born jockey Warren Kennedy.
He settled the horse midfield and made sure he had plenty of clear running before picking a path between horses in the home straight. Uderzo shot to the front inside the last 300m and maintained a strong run to the line to win by 1-1/4 lengths.
Uderzo was a $125,000 purchase from the 2020 Karaka yearling sales and is out of the Pentire mare Etosha Lass. He is a half-brother to Desert Storm and Namibia Lass, both of whom won three races.
The Kelts race the horse with a group of others including another Havelock North couple, Andrew and Lauren Scott.
Synchronize zeros in again
Progressive mare Synchronize, raced by a syndicate that includes Waipukurau’s Michael Ormsby, made an impressive return to the racetrack when taking out the Listed $100,000 Hallmark Stud Handicap at Pukekohe on Monday.
The Mark Walker-trained 4-year-old was returning from an enforced absence after she bled when finishing well back at Te Rapa in August and turned in a sizzling home straight sprint to take out the 1200m event.
Two handy trial runs, including a second over 1000m at Avondale a fortnight earlier, had her ready for Monday’s black type assignment and she didn’t disappoint.
South African-born jockey Craig Zackey settled the daughter of Savabeel near the rear in a fast run race and was still spotting the leaders several lengths rounding the home bend. Held up for one run at them, Synchronize hit top gear in a couple of strides and burst clear to win by 2-1/4 lengths.
Owned by the Te Akau Flexibeel Racing Partnership, Synchronize was purchased by Te Akau Racing boss David Ellis for $280,000 from the 2020 Karaka yearling sales and is bred to be good as she is a granddaughter of Legs, whose wins included the Group 1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m) at Trentham and the Group 1 Livamol Classic (2040m) at Hastings.
