Weekend racing with Iain Hyndman

Surely Sacred aiming for an Ellerslie Classic three-peat in the Derby on Saturday. Photo / Trish Dunell

Iain Hyndman's Ellerslie Tips
1: One Bakerstreet, Born Dragon, Monaco
2: Raposa Rapida, William Tell, Maduro
3: Acutus, Apellido, Nordic
4: Paisley Park, Gino Severini, Podravino
5: Sacred Day, Artiste, Gundown
6: Elate, Spring Delight, Oratia
7: Tiger Silk, She's A Thief, Queen Of The Air
8: Bisou Bisou, Princess Kereru, Spring Heat
9: Surely Sacred, Lincoln Falls, Vernanme
10: Fiscal Fantasy, Tantalising, Whenharrymetsaddle
Best Bet: Fiscal Fantasy (R10)

Exciting three-year-old Surely Scared is favoured to add a third Auckland Classic scalp to his mantle when he lines-up in the Gr.1 Vodafone New Zealand Derby (2400m) at Ellerslie on Saturday.

The Tony Pike-trained gelding, who is raced by Raffles Racing, has won three of his five starts to date, including the Gr.2 Auckland Guineas (1600m) and Gr.2 Avondale Guineas (2100m) on the Auckland track where he has also finished runner-up in the Gr.3 Bonecrusher Stakes (1400m) and fifth in the Karaka Million 3YO Classic (1600m).

"He's a pretty exciting racehorse," Raffles farm manager Bruce Sherwin said.

"He's still on his first racing preparation, so he has achieved a lot and anything on Saturday is going to be a bonus.

"In the two Guineas, he showed a really good turn of foot, particularly the first one, the Auckland Guineas, where the race wasn't run at a solid tempo. To be able to quicken off a slow speed is a great asset moving forward.

"In the Avondale Guineas he showed a great turn of foot to put himself into the race, maybe a touch early, and he kept up a strong gallop to the line. There are a lot of positives there."

While Surely Sacred finished fifth behind Long Leaf in the Karaka Million, Sherwin said he was still pleased with his performance.

"The Karaka Million didn't go quite to plan," he said. "He ended up in an awkward place, pocketed back on the inside and got clear with no momentum too late. So the run was still very good in hindsight."

With a solid form line there has been plenty of interest in Surely Scared, however, Sherwin said no offers will be considered until after Saturday's race.

"There has been interest from Hong Kong and as a gelding the offers are becoming quite tempting," he said. "But we have put everything on hold until after Saturday."

Sherwin said he has received positive reports from trainer Tony Pike since his victory in the Avondale Guineas earlier this month, but believes his charge will have some strong opposition in tomorrow's contest despite TAB bookmakers marking him as a $3 early favourite for the race. – NZ Racing Desk