A lot has changed since the last time Not Ideal was racing in New Zealand.
The six-year-old returns to domestic racing at Ruakaka tomorrow after a successful career in Hong Kong, to where he was exported after winning his only two New Zealand starts.
They were back in December 2019 and January 2020, but he has hardly been idle since, racing 16 times in Hong Kong. After taking a long time to settle, he recorded four wins — two each at Sha Tin and Happy Valley.
But when niggles started to affect him he was, like so many former Kiwi gallopers in Hong Kong, returned to New Zealand where Cambridge trainer Ken Harrison feels lucky to have been entrusted with him.
“When you watch some of his videos from up there he is a pretty serious horse,” says Harrison.