Racing: Chapman hopeful his pride and joy can star at Omakau

It has been a while between drinks for Four Starzzz Flash but he gets his chance at Omakau today. Photo / Greg Bowker

A lot has happened since Four Starzzz Flash won the 2013 Central Otago Trotting Cup.

He has had two cracks at the New Zealand Cup, he has found himself battling the handicaps and he has had to chase rising stars in red-hot times in recent weeks.

His seventh behind Bit Of A Legend at Addington on December 19 was followed by a sixth to Isaiah in the Ashburton Cup last Friday, as his Amberley trainer, Kevin Chapman, has tried to get the 8-year-old back to fitness.

"He wasn't really right at Cup time," Chapman said. "He got a little bit crook before the Methven Cup and we scratched him out of that.

"Then it has been a bit hard with the shortage of trials to get back to race fitness again."

Chapman, who will take the drive again today, hoped to give the former Elsu Classic winner a workout before his December 19 run, but the workouts were scrapped, meaning he was always one run short going into that fresh-up run.

What did not help was the 3:09.2 that Bit Of A Legend paced to win the 2600m mobile pace.

"I didn't really expect them to go 3:09. I thought they'd go 3.12 or 3.13," Chapman said.

"But that's all right - he came through that. I thought his effort in the Ashburton Cup last week was pretty good, actually. He missed away, then he went around them and cracked it on a bit."

Chapman has taken the reins in the last two races, as he tries to get a feel for Four Starzzz Flash's state of mind.

He was as surprised as anyone when the entire missed away at Ashburton from his 25m back mark.

"He hasn't done that for a long time. That just added to his handicap; it's hard enough off handicaps at any rate without adding to it. I reckon when I got to the winning post the first time, I was giving the leader 40m so he actually went pretty good."

Four Starzzz Flash is joined on the back row of the mobile start by Mighty Flying Mac, Pemberton Shard, Belkmyster and last year's winner, Jason Rulz. But the front line of this type of race is where Chapman often looks for the speed.

"You get some nice horses drawn 1, 2 and 3 and they can still run time and you've got to give them a start or go around them," he said.

"You're either off a handicap or a preferential barrier draw and it's not easy for a horse like him, it's just detrimental to the horse - there's nothing there for him.

"The handicapping system is dead against him. Any of those C4-C5-type horses, they can run time and you can't give them a start or be penalised against them. Just because you've won what you've run, they can run time, and you can't beat the clock."

Four Starzzz Flash's win in 2013 came in heavy rain and while most racegoers would prefer sunshine, Chapman would be quite partial to seeing rain at Omakau: "I don't mind if it pours down with rain again."