Racing: Rematch of top juveniles

Give Allan Sharrock the prize for racing's Mr Honesty.

Going into tomorrow's $45,000 Ford 2YO Classic, the Taranaki trainer admits he made a blue when he produced Wahid into the $120,000 Ellerslie Sires' Produce last start.

He says he trained his talented youngster up to specifically beat eventual winner Mi Jubilee and rather than help him, it brought Wahid undone.

"Because she's such a brilliant filly I was too conscious of putting leg speed into him. What it did was leave him too short. There is a fine line in 2-year-olds between being too fresh and too dour."

Missing a fraction of work with a bruised heel compounded Wahid's problems for the group one Ellerslie feature.

"I couldn't believe it when I saw him up running second and pulling his head off - I knew then I'd made a blue.

"When he won the Wakefield he was flat to be handy and next start in the Classique at Te Rapa, third last was the closest he could get early.

"Then at Ellerslie they've run along at an incredible 1.8.99 speed and he's pulling."

Wahid blew heavily after that Ellerslie race and Sharrock says the youngster is improved for tomorrow's group three feature.

"Mi Jubilee is a fabulous filly, but I do think that her being able to race two weeks before the Sires at Ellerslie helped her, whereas Wahid went into that race with a month between races.

"I'd set my book for the [$500,000] Classique - it was my main mission and I didn't think it was fair on him to back up in the colts race two weeks later at Matamata."

Sharrock, along with most observers, was surprised yesterday when the TAB opened up its Final Field betting with Mi Jubilee and Wahid as virtual joint favourites.

"I would have thought that around a short course like New Plymouth the filly would have been a standout favourite."

Not that Sharrock has conceded defeat.

"Wahid could conceivably be three lengths off Mi Jubilee with 500m to run and if he's good enough he could win - if he can't pick her up then she's too good on the day."

Sharrock has a niggling worry that a rain-affected track could bring both stars undone.

"The track here is 3.7 and soft at the moment. They had forecast a few thunder showers, but there's nothing like that ... it's beautifully clear with a southerly wind that will be drying the track quite fast.

"If we have no showers I'm tipping the track will get back to easy.

"If it does rain then anything could happen - Mi Jubilee was beaten on an 'off' track at Awapuni and Wahid got beaten at Woodville when the track was affected."

Mi Jubilee's trainer Stephen Crutchley is unconcerned about a rain-affected track.

"She's always been able to handle wet ground. She galloped on a soft surface and galloped very well on Tuesday morning and the track here at Wanganui this morning was even softer and it was no trouble to her."

Crutchley said people have the wrong impression of Mi Jubilee's ability when rain is around because of the Awapuni defeat.

"The track was officially easy, but it was worse than that and she had a lot of weight [57kg] that day.

"We've always know she is fine in the wet - when she was winning the barrier trials last winter the tracks were heavy and she was beating older horses that had won races and she was only a yearling."

Speedster Kindacross helped make the race for Mi Jubilee in the Sires Produce at Ellerslie, setting up a fast pace and allowing the filly to sprint hard from the corner.

Kindacross looks certain to set up a similar scenario again.

"We can either lead or trail and it really makes no difference to us."

This race is a final lead-up for Mi Jubilee's attack on the $120,000 Ford Manawatu Sires Produce. The filly will then be rested with no thought being given to the big money in Queensland during the winter.

"The current plans are to give her a break and take her and her yearling brother to Sydney for spring racing. She will definitely go, almost certainly without racing here, and the brother will go if he is not sold meantime. There is a lot of interest in him, but the owner doesn't care if he sells or not."