Racing: Stayer Bazelle set to back up

BRISBANE - Waikato trainer Paul Jenkins may run his staying mare Bazelle twice within a week in the group-three Premier's Cup this Saturday after her fifth in the Doomben Cup on Saturday.

Jenkins said the mare's main targets remained the group-two O'Shea Stakes (2400m) on June 3 and the group-one A$500,000 ($620,000) Brisbane Cup nine days later.

"But I might throw in a nomination for the Premier's Cup next weekend," Jenkins said yesterday.

"It's a group three and worth A$125,000, so there is black type [a stakes race] on offer for her."

The Premier's Cup is over the same 2200m distance as Saturday's Doomben Cup.

Jenkins said Bazelle might have been "a touch underdone" for the race, but pleased him with the way in which she boxed on in the straight after being on the pace throughout.

Above Deck won the race from former New Zealand mare Octapussy and Roman Arch.

New Zealand-owned mare Vouvray was in a challenging position on the turn but dropped out to finish ninth.

It was probably the 5-year-old mare's last race, with a decision to be made this week on whether to retire her, according to Brent Taylor, whose family own the mare with Trelawney Stud.

Taylor said he would talk with trainer Peter Moody during the week.

"We will get our heads together in the next couple of days and make a decision from here," Taylor said.

"The chances are that that [retirement] is probably what is going to happen."

The plan was always for her to be retired this winter and be served by an Australian stallion, yet to be decided on, in the spring, he said.

Vouvray won the group-one 2004 Queensland Oaks and ran fourth in the Caulfield Cup and third in the Mackinnon Stakes the following spring.

Despite running an impressive list of placings in group and stakes races, she hasn't won since that oaks victory two years ago.

All up, she won three times in 26 starts for around A$800,000 in prizemoney.

- NZPA