Racing: Bonavista Bay may be the real deal

You don't even need to hear the accent to know you are talking to an Aussie when you hear something like this.

"I think he will lead and we don't hand up, so I think he will win."

That is the infectious enthusiasm of owner Bob Proberts heading into tomorrow night's $100,000 Woodlands Taylor Mile at Alexandra Park with Bonavista Bay.

While many New Zealand harness racing trainers and owners would choke trying to get their mouths to spout forth such a confident pre-race assessment, Proberts is the proto-typical Australian racing man.

Confident, personable, happy, informed. Did I mention, confident?

And in Bonavista Bay he might just have the horse to convince you to put your money where his mouth is.

Bonavista Bay may not have the blinding speed of Taylor favourite Tintin In America but he is a wonderful stayer who has not been beaten against his own age group this season.

After a torrid summer, he returned to racing with an easy win in Victoria last Friday, a mere pipe-opener for tomorrow night.

He has drawn barrier three in the Taylor and Proberts is anything but coy about his tactics.

"He is a great stayer and we have the draw to use those qualities this week," says Proberts.

"If we can get to the front he will take an awful lot of catching."

Bonavista Bay has looked freakish on occasions, with even his defeat to Tintin In America in last season's Breeders Crown in Victoria suggesting he could be Australian pacing's next big thing.

This season, he has ridden a rollercoaster between rugged defiance and punter-crushing defeats, the latter often caused by hoof problems.

"He has got a very thin base to his hooves but they are good at the moment so they won't be a problem," said Proberts.

Bonavista Bay is all legs and heart - wearing a massive hopple - and initially punters could have concerns about how the big boy will bend that body around Alexandra Park at full speed.

While he occasionally seemed loose and goofy when he trialled there on Tuesday, he handled hitting the tricky final bend at high speed with ease, pleasing trainer Mike Reed.

"I was happy with how he handled that and so far so good," said the more conservative Reed.

With two speedsters drawn inside him, Bonavista Bay will not simply get handed the lead tomorrow night but he does have one of Australasia's most aggressive drivers in Chris Alford steering so there is little doubt he will provide the early pressure.

If he gets any sort of easy 400m sectional in the first half of the race it will take a special horse to run him down.

Should the early burn be too severe he faces setting the race up for Tintin In America, as he did at the Breeders Crown.

There is already confidence somewhere that Bonavista Bay will make an impression tomorrow night, with the TAB taking money on him to win the Harness Jewels at Cambridge on June 5.

To even qualify for his division of that series he needs to win around $50,000 in his two Alexandra Park starts over the next eight days. Anything less and he won't make the stakes-based cutoff for the Jewels.

"If he does enough here to make the Jewels then we will do everything we can to bring him back," said Proberts, with Bonavista Bay returning home straight after next Friday's Messenger Pace.

Long term, his connections would love to unleash Bonavista Bay's ground-devouring stride at Addington in the New Zealand Cup and Interdominions next season.

And glory of that level almost certainly awaits whoever wins tomorrow night's Taylor Mile.

Of the past seven winners of the super sprint, three have gone on to win the New Zealand Cup (Changeover, Mainland Banner, Just An Excuse), two have won Auckland Cups (Auckland Reactor and Elsu) and 2007 winner Divisive later collected a Miracle Mile.

So Bonavista Bay may just need to be everything Proberts thinks he is to add his name to the great race tomorrow night.