Racing: Pike adds to Queensland arsenal

Tony Pike.

Tony Pike has runners at two Queensland meetings this weekend and further added to his carnival firepower.

The Cambridge trainer has Sacred Master in today's Listed Wayne Wilson at Doomben while at the Sunshine Coast tomorrow Terra Sancta and (The) Bostonian will be in action.

New Zealand's wet weather has also forced Pike's hand with handy three-year-old Sacred Rebel, who has joined his Queensland team for the winter.

The Sepoy gelding travelled to Brisbane on Thursday night after impressing in two trials last month and is being set for an initial two start campaign in the Sunshine State.

"He's kicking off at the Sunshine Coast on Monday in a C1 1200m and then we will give him another run three weeks later in a three-year-old plate race at Doomben over 1350m," Pike said. "He had the two trials last month and trialled up really well in both of them, so it looks like a couple of nice races for him in Brisbane. Obviously, the wet tracks here have sort of forced us to get him to Australia."

Meanwhile, stablemate Terra Sancta was denied another shot at group one glory, but she has a chance at a degree of compensation with further success over 1800m tomorrow.

The filly won races at Ipswich and the Sunshine Coast before she took on the best of her age group at Doomben.

"We were hoping to get her into the Queensland Derby field, but she didn't make it," Pike said.

"She performed well enough in the Oaks to suggest she would have been a Derby chance."

Terra Sancta finished sixth in the group one Queensland Oaks (2200m) under Jim Byrne, who takes the ride again in the Oaks Hotel & Resorts Handicap tomorrow.

"She wouldn't have won, but Jim said she would have got closer with a better run," Pike said.

"She's done a really good job and, hopefully, she can win again to get her rating up. She'll come home for a break after this and then we can get her ready for some nice staying races in the summer and autumn."

Pike's frustrations with (The) Bostonian have continued tomorrow with the three-year-old again handed a wide alley in the Listed Daybreak Lover (1200m).

"He has been scratched twice with wide gates and then he got a spider bite on his nose so we can't pull a trick," Pike said.

"Having said that, he handles cut in the ground so hopefully that negates the bad draw and he's been working well."

Pike will also be represented by Sacred Master in today's Listed Wayne Wilson at Doomben and is expecting improvement on his unplaced previous effort in the group three Lord Mayor's Cup which was over 1630m.

"He blew out and might just need another run," he said.

- NZ Racing Desk