Racing: Juice puts squeeze on arch-rival

John Wheeler can't wait until Juice gets to the last 200m of tomorrow's $400,000 NZ Bloodstock Insurance Oaks at Trentham.

It's only then that he'll know whether he's right or wrong.

Wheeler suspects, but doesn't know for sure, that Juice has not had her Oaks chances adversely affected by running in the $2.2 million Telecom Derby at Ellerslie two weeks ago.

Two tough group one 2400m races like the Derby and the Oaks is difficult for a filly.

But if Juice has come through her equal fourth in the Derby in the same form she is going to be the one favourite Daffodil has to beat tomorrow.

Fourth in the Ellerslie classic is excellent form for this race.

"She's only had the two runs this prep and is still on the way up," said Wheeler yesterday.

"I'd expect her to improve although I haven't tested her because she had a hard race at Ellerslie.

"It's meant I haven't worked her at any speed to get an accurate guide on her.

"But she ate up straight after the race and continues to eat up well."

The last time Juice and Daffodil met at this level Daffodil got the better of the Awapuni filly in the group one 1000 Guineas at Riccarton when she had the last run at her in the home straight.

That was at 1600m but the more grinding 2400m tomorrow doesn't concern Wheeler.

"She was strong on the line in the Derby - she's got gears."

Daffodil looked perhaps the best of the fillies when she won the 1000 Guineas in November.

She was the beaten favourite behind Ekstreme last start in the Lowland Stakes on this course, but rider Hayden Tinsley didn't knock her around in the closing stages when Ekstreme was clearly handling the heavy conditions better.

Trainer Kevin Gray has few concerns.

"I'm very, very happy. I can't fault her fitness and she's got a good draw.

"She's been up a long while, but she's a placid horse and just chugs along. As far as the 2400m distance goes ... well, you just don't know until they try it."

Gray said he's not concerned Ekstreme beat his filly last time.

"On better footing she'll give that other filly all she needs, I'm certain of that."

Northern filly Mill Duckie has won her last three and is looking better with each start.

Trainer Richard Collett says the step from 2100m to 2400m is something most Oaks runners have to contend with but he's not losing sleep over it.

"She's the toughest filly I've got. She never knows when to knock off."

At the Ellerslie Christmas carnival Mill Duckie ran a close-up fifth to Alagant Satin and her own stablemate Shanzero in the Eight Carat Classic and six days later showed she hadn't backed up well when well beaten in the Royal Stakes.

It's different this time, backing up from a win at the Derby/Cup carnival says Collett.

"She's matured a lot in the last couple of months. She'll back up brilliantly."

One concern for Collett is the barrier draw. At Ellerslie last start Mill Duckie drew gate No 4 and trailed the leaders.

This time she will come out of gate No 17 if there are no scratchings.

"That makes it a lot harder, although we don't yet know what the track's going to come up. It's possible the inside may not be the place to be."

It would be unwise to judge the chances of promising filly Glamorous Girl on her eighth placing in the Sunline Stakes at Ellerslie last start, warned her co-trainer Roger James.

"She was three wide for a portion of the race and it wasn't what I was looking for.

"It just wasn't the right race to judge her on.

"She finished only 3.2 lengths from the winner and I thought it wasn't a bad effort.

"She's done extremely well since."

Glamorous Girl is already a winner on the wide spaces of Trentham.

CLASSIC TEST
* Juice's equal fourth in the $2.2 million Telecom Derby puts her right in Oaks contention.
* The favourite is Daffodil, who claimed Juice in the 1000 Guineas in the spring.
* Daffodil was beaten by Ekstreme last start, but trainer Kevin Gray believes his filly will have the edge this time