By Adam Hamilton
Bring on Tuesday.
That’s the last word from Tiger Tara’s trainer Kevin Pizzuto ahead of the NZ Cup.
After weeks of tossing up whether or not to tackle the Cup, Pizzuto is glad he took-up the challenge and pumped about how well his stable star is ahead the great race.
“All you can ask to have your horse at his best and that’s exactly where Tiger Tara is at at,” he said.
“He’s had a great prep back home, traveled over well and worked really well yesterday (Saturday).”
Pizzuto, who is stabled at Mitchell Kerr’s barn, worked Tiger Tara over 3200m in 4min15sec.
“He did it well and ran home in 25.6sec. I’m rapt,” he said.
“I know how hard it’s going to be, but he’s been here and done it all before and he’s never been better in the 10 months or so he’s been in my stable.”
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LIFE is great for Ashlee Grives right now.
Her best horse Ameretto is heading to Perth in the care of Kerryn Manning having won nine of her past 10 starts and run second to Lennytheshark in the Victoria Cup at the other.
And, back at home, Grives decision to move from Bathurst to Menangle and team-up with Kiwi trainer Mark Jones is already looking exciting.
Whittaker made it three wins from as many starts in the Menangle stable when he brilliantly won the Star Trek final in a 1min54.8sec mile rate for 1730m at Bathurst last Friday night.
Whittaker is unbeaten in three Aussie runs for the Grives/Jones combination.
“It was the right time to try something different and the offer to team-up with Mark was exciting,” Grives said.
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THERE is some serious X-factor about Shadow Sax.
And the patience of co-trainers Emma Stewart and Clayton Tonkin is starting to be rewarded.
After more than a year off with injury, Shadow Sax has won five of his six comeback runs and finished second in the Breeders Crown 4YO final at the other.
His win in last Saturday night’s $50,000 4&5YO Championship (2240m) at Melton has to be seen to be believed.
In a star-studded field, Shadow Sax sat parked and bolted in.
And he ripped home in closing splits of 26.9 and 27.4sec having sat outside classy former Kiwi pacer Motu Meteor, who weakened late for fourth.
Another pair exciting ex-Kiwi pacers Moonrock and Let It Ride ran big races for second and third.
But Shadow Sax’s win oozed class and he appeared to win with plenty still in reserve for driver Gavin Lang.
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THE move to Sydney seems to have rejuvenated former two-time Inter Dominion placegetter Flaming Flutter.
The eight-year-old has spent of his career with Victorian trainer Geoff Webster, but also had a stint in WA with Ross Olivieri.
Recently connections sent him to the NSW stable of Jimmy Rattray of Beautide fame.
He caught the eye when fourth at his first run for Rattray then hit the line strongly for a narrow but impressive win in a slick 1min54.7sec mile rate for 2300m at Menangle last Saturday night.
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FORMER Purdon/Rasmussen pacer Motu Premier is a genuine Inter Dominion smokey.
In 10 WA starts for trainer Ross Olivieri, the Bettors Delight gelding has posted six wins, three seconds and a third.
It’s his past three runs in free-for-all class which have really underlined his potential.
Last Friday night’s late-surging second to American Boy – after doing all the work in fast time – was top shelf.
Motu Premier got within a half-head of victory after sitting parked in a 1min54.8sec mile rate for 2130m.
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IT was great to see the old boy, Vincennes, return to his best form with a sparkling first-up win.
The eight-year-old, now in the care of Yabby Dams’ head trainer Anton Golino at Ballarat, returned from almost four months out when he worked to the front from a 10m handicap and gave nothing else a chance in the Group 3 Yarra Valley Trotters’ Cup last Thursday,.
Driver Zac Phillips crawled through the middle stages and dashed home in 57.4 and 28.6sec to land Vincennes’ 19th from 62 starts.
With stocks thin in open-class trotting ranks on both sides of the ditch, Vincennes’ resurgence is timely.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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