“She has got a really good 200m sprint on her. She ran the quickest last 400m of the race in the Rupert Clarke, so that shows the turn of foot that she has, and she was exposed for most of that run.
“If she can sit in behind the speed, I think she will have a turn of foot as good as anything.”
Meanwhile, Gleeson has been pleased with the way Te Akau Racing’s sprinting sensation Imperatriz has come through her victory in last Saturday’s Group1 Black Caviar Lightning (1000m).
“She is super. She really bounced out of the run,” he said. “Being a sit and sprint race, generally they all will, but she wanted to get back to the races and have that blowout.
“It has really switched her on mentally and I watched her walk home from the pool the other day and she had a strut on her, so she is in a really good headspace.”
Mark Walker was due to return to Australia yesterday (Friday) and was to watch her work this morning before making a decision as to where she races next.
HB-owned runner in Hobartville Stakes
A Hawke’s Bay family will be represented by Fukubana in today’s Group 2 A$400,000 Hobartville Stakes at Rosehill, in Sydney.
The three-year-old colt was bred by Keyano Limited, a company set up Havelock North’s Murray Andersen. He and his wife Jo head the company with the other members being their daughter Tracy and son-in-law Gavin Triplow.
Keyano Limited sold a majority ownership in Fukubana but have retained a share.
The horse has drawn barrier five for today’s 1400m feature and will be ridden by ex-pat New Zealand jockey James McDonald.
Fukubana is by Dundeel out of the Lonhro mare Sekiyama and has had four starts for two wins, a second and a third.
He is trained at Murwillumbah by Matthew Dunn and goes in to today’s race on the back of an impressive win in a 1200m three-year-old race at Doomben on February 10.
Murray and Jo Andersen bred Dundeel and shared in the ownership of that former champion galloper who won 10 races, six at Group 1 level, and is now a highly successful sire standing at stud in Australia.
They are also the breeders of Community, a close relation to Dundeel who won two races in a row and was entered for a A$60,000 Rating 64 race over 1900m at Canterbury Park, Sydney, last night.
Community is by Scissor Kick out of Forreel, a Nom Du Jeu mare who is a half-sister to Dundeel.
The Andersens sold Community, who is now raced by an Australian syndicate and trained at Wyong by Kim Waugh.
Deserved success by Fonsi
Hastings-trained Fonsi capped off a string of minor placings with a deserved win in a 1400m maiden race on his home track last Sunday.
The three-year-old Shamexpress gelding was having his eighth start and had previously recorded four seconds and a third.
Formerly trained in the north, he is now prepared on the Hastings track by Patrick Campbell and owned by his Dannevirke breeder Alex Smith.
Fonsi was ridden by apprentice Tayla Mitchell last Sunday and she took the horse straight to the front from an inside draw. They pinched a break on their rivals rounding the home turn and Fonsi managed to cling on to win by a short head.
Fonsi is a half-brother to Duncan Creek, who has recorded three wins and seven seconds from 24 starts.
Lowland Stakes meeting
The Group 2 $150,000 Little Avondale Lowland Stakes will be the feature race at a twilight race meeting staged on the Hastings track next Wednesday.
The 2100m event is the ninth race in the New Zealand Bloodstock Filly of the Year series, with the Group 3 McKee Family Sunline Vase (2100m) at Ellerslie on March 2 and the Group 1 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai New Zealand Oaks (2400m) at Trentham on March 16 the final two races.
Asterix back to his best with cup win
Talented stayer Asterix returned to the scene of his greatest triumph when he stormed home to take out last Saturday’s Group 2 $175,000 Eagle Technology Avondale Cup (2400m) at Ellerslie.
The injury-plagued son of Tavistock took out the 2022 edition of the Group 1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) but a string of issues had hampered his progress since then.
Asterix is trained by Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott and is raced by a group that includes two Havelock North couples, Sam and Birdie Kelt and Andrew and Lauren Scott, and former New Zealand cricketer Mark Greatbatch.
They have shown infinite patience with the now five-year-old and he repaid that faith with a powerful staying performance last Saturday.
It was the horse’s fourth win from only 13 starts and has amassed more than $760,000 in stakemoney. He was a $450,000 purchase from a Two-year-old Ready To Run sale.
Jockey Lynsey Satherley followed her instructions to the letter as she let Asterix lob along in midfield before angling off the rail approaching the home turn.
Faced with a wall of horses in front of her, Satherley didn’t panic and managed to find a gap between horses in the middle of the track. Asterix then produced a dogged finish to down Dionysus by half a length, with the pacemaker Good Oil 1-1/4 lengths back in third.
Co-trainer Andrew Scott breathed a sigh of relief after the race as he explained some of the trials and tribulations the horse had faced since his Derby victory.
“It’s a credit to the team as he has had a lot of troubles throughout his career and the guys have put a lot of time into him to get him to this stage.
“We had to let him grow his feet out then he had a heart fibrillation and got the thumps after taking him to Sydney.
‘We have brought him up slowly with this in mind and we are hoping he can have a great recovery from here.”
TAB bookmakers have now installed Asterix as the $5 favourite Asterix as the $5 favourite for the Group 2 $500,000 Barfoot & Thomspon Auckland Cup (3200m) on March 9, ahead of Mark Twain at $7.
Verry Elleegant dies while foaling
The Australian racing industry is in mourning following the news of the passing of 11-time Group One winner Verry Elleegant when foaling in Ireland.
By Grangewilliam Stud stallion Zed, Verry Elleegant was bred by Don Goodwin out of his Danroad mare Opulence, who he purchased as a broodmare prospect for $14,000 off South Auckland horseman Nicholas Bishara at Karaka.
It came full circle for Bishara, and he was pleased to take on her progeny, including Verry Elleegant, to educate and subsequently train.
Verry Elleegant showed immense talent from day one and won two of her three starts for Bishara before she was partly sold, with the ownership group expanding to include John, Mark and Rachael Carter and a group of their Auckland friends, along with a number of Australians, including Aziz “Ozzie” Kheir and Brae Sokolski.
She was subsequently transferred to leading Victorian trainer Darren Weir, for whom she had four starts, including victory in the Group 3 Ethereal Stakes (2000m) and placed in the Group 2 Edward Manifold Stakes (1600m), before she joined leading Sydney trainer Chris Waller’s barn following Weir’s disqualification.
Verry Elleegant was a very raw individual with her eccentric and ungainly galloping style, but under Waller she matured into a world-class racehorse and won a further 13 races, 11 of those at elite-level, highlighted by her popular victory in the 2021 edition of the Group 1 Melbourne Cup (3200m).
Conquering Europe was on the minds of a few of her owners and the decision was made to head to France with the mare, who had an unsuccessful four-start campaign for trainer Francis-Henri Graffard before she was retired from racing and was subsequently mated with Sea The Stars.
Her performances on the track earned her a string of accolades, including Australian Horse of the Year (2020-21), Champion Australian Stayer (2020-21 and 2021-22), Champion Australian Middle-Distance Horse in (2020-21) and Joint Head of 2021 WBR Rankings.
In all, Verry Elleegant won 16 races and was also placed in a further 12 of her 40 starts,. She won at distances ranging from 1400m to 3200m and has truly earned her spot as one of the legends of the Australian turf.
