NZ Briefs for 1 September 2015

Filly on stakes trail; Lucia Valentina on track for Tramway; Time off for Hastings winner; Bounding; Waipa meeting abandoned.

Filly on stakes trail

Sally’s Mustang is now likely to run first-up at black type level after missing an outing at Ruakaka.

A boil on her wither forced trainer Shaune Ritchie to withdraw the filly, who won her only start as a two-year-old, last Saturday.

“I really wanted to run her, but I had to do the right thing by the horse,” he said.

“She will probably go straight into the Gold Trail Stakes at Hastings now. I might trial her at Cambridge next week if the track isn’t too heavy.”

Lucia Valentina on track for Tramway

New Zealand-bred and owned mare Lucia Valentina will defend her Gr.2 Tramway Stakes title at Randwick on Saturday.

Raced by Lib Petagna, she won the 1400 metre event 12 months ago before she added the Gr.1 Turnbull Stakes to her record and ran third in the Gr.1 Caulfield Cup.

Trainer Kris Lees has trialled Lucia Valentina at Gosford and Newcastle to fit her for her first appearance since she ran sixth in the Gr.1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes in the autumn.

Time off for Hastings winner

The Bold One is enjoying a week off after his successful return to racing from a wind operation.

He won for the fourth time in his eight start career with a strong first-up performance on the opening day of the Hawke’s Bay carnival and he will return to Hastings for the final day on October 3.

“He won pretty easily and to be fair he switched off as well,” rider Leith Innes said.

A decision on whether Innes retains the ride on stablemate Kawi in the Gr.1 Windsor Park Plate has yet to be made. He successfully substituted for the suspended Johnathon Parkes in the Gr.1 Makfi Challenge Stakes.

Bounding

Bounding will have one more start before she attempts to add an Australian Group One title to her CV.

Successful in the Railway Stakes at Ellerslie last year for trainers Ken and Bev Kelso, the Gary Harding-owned mare was a commanding winner of the Gr.3 The Heath in her first start from Peter and Paul Snowden’s Randwick stable at Caulfield last Saturday.

Bounding’s next start will be in the Gr.3 Sheraco Stakes at Rosehill on Saturday week ahead of the Gr.1 Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes back at Caulfield on September 26.

Waipa meeting abandoned

The Waipa Racing Club’s meeting scheduled for Te Awamutu on Wednesday has been abandoned.

The track has been inundated with heavy rain in recent days with more forecast and the decision was made by representatives of the club and the Racing Integrity Unit on Tuesday call off the meeting due to surface water and flooding.

Nominations for the Tauranga meeting on Friday, September 4 have been extended until 9am on Wednesday with a $7000 maiden event over 2100 metres added to the programme.