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I recall him posting online that if anyone stopped him from visiting his horses pre-race he'd tell where to stick it.  

Sunday’s Clotworthy Racing Open (1600m) lost some of its top-flight talent with Mark Twain’s scratching due to the Heavy10 track at Te Aroha, but another returning stayer took the spotlight with a bold first-up performance. Last season’s Gr.3 Queen Elizabeth II Cup (2400m) winner Son Of Sun (NZ) (Tavistock) kicked off his six-year-old preparation in the $50,000 open handicap. His last raceday appearance had been 176 days earlier, when he finished eighth in the Gr.2 Auckland Cup (3200m) on Champions Day at Ellerslie on March 8. The Tavistock gelding was ridden by Warren Kennedy on Sunday and settled near the back of the field. When Rosetown Princess saved significant ground by sticking to the inside around the home turn, Son Of Sun was left all on his own in a clear last. Kennedy angled Son Of Sun across the back of the field and got him to the extreme outside halfway down the straight, but he was still last and had plenty of work to do and limited time remaining. Son Of Sun quickly balanced himself up and accelerated, powering past all of his seven rivals within the last 150m of the race. He collared fellow stayer Canheroc in the final few strides and snatched victory by a head. The race was run in 1:46.55 on extremely heavy ground. Co-trainer Grant Cooksley had been happy with Son Of Sun’s progress through the early part of his new campaign, but was still pleasantly surprised by his first-up performance. “He won that race really well,” he said. “It was nice to see him produce a performance like that first-up. It was probably a bit better than we were expecting, and especially on a track like that. “We’d been pretty happy with him leading into it. He’s coming up well and is a stronger and more mature horse this time in.” Son Of Sun was a $65,000 purchase from Book 1 of Karaka 2021. He has now had 22 starts for seven wins, three placings and $375,595 in stakes for owners New Zealand Gingkosun Investment Ltd. The TAB reacted to Sunday’s win by moving Son Of Sun from $41 into $18 for the Gr.1 Livamol Classic (2040m) at Ellerslie on October 18. He is also nominated for the Gr.1 Howden Insurance Mile (1600m) at Te Rapa on September 27, for which he remains a $41 chance. “I’m not sure where we’ll go with him now, there’s not that many suitable handicap races around for him during the spring,” Cooksley said. “We’ll get him home and see how he’s come through this, then try to work out a plan.” View the full article

Former Horse Of The Year Pride Of Jenni (Pride Of Dubai) is set to take a step towards a return to the racetrack having been entered for upcoming trials. The Ciaron Maher-trained mare is entered for a jump-out on Monday at Cranbourne and for a trial on the Caulfield Heath track on Tuesday, both over 800m. Maher said track conditions would be pivotal in determining where the champion mare steps out. It was thought Pride Of Jenni was headed for the breeding barn when tenth in the Gr.1 Doomben Cup in May, but Maher said the mare had returned to his Cranbourne stable in excellent order. Pride Of Jenni did her pre-training at owner Tony Ottobre’s property on the Mornington Peninsula. “They did a good job with her,” Maher said. “She had a nice covering on her. She is nice and happy, nice and free in her action. “The signs are positive. She’s a marvel actually, she surprises me every time she comes back. “She’ll trial on one of those days. We’ll have a look at track conditions and work out which suits better, but it doesn’t really matter. “She seems in a really good spot, physically and mentally and we’ll be guided by how she jumps out, but all signs seem pretty good.” Maher said no race had been picked out for Pride Of Jenni’s first-up outing, and her program would be worked on further following Monday or Tuesday’s hit out. The trainer indicated Pride Of Jenni was likely to remain in Melbourne for her campaign. “I think she will stay here,” Maher said. “I think we’ll keep her around the mile, 1800 (metres) and probably on the backend of spring.” The Gr.1 Empire Rose Stakes and the Gr.1 Champions Mile, both over 1600m at Flemington during Melbourne Cup week, could be potential targets for Pride Of Jenni this spring. Those two races in 2023 were the first Group One victories for the mare, kickstarting her towards Horse Of The Year honours in season 2023-24. View the full article

Former elite hurdler Nedwin (NZ) (Niagara) confirmed his arrival among steeplechasing’s top echelon with a supreme performance in the $75,000 Howden Insurance Pakuranga Hunt Cup (4300m) at Te Aroha on Sunday. The Niagara gelding has now had 48 starts for 15 wins, six placings and $487,843 in stakes. Seven of those wins have come over hurdles, including the 2022 Pakuranga Hunt Hurdle (3200m), the 2023 Great Northern Hurdle (4200m), the 2023 Waikato Hurdle (3200m) and two editions of the Wellington Hurdles (3400m). Hawke’s Bay trainers Paul Nelson and Corrina McDougal have switched Nedwin to the bigger fences this winter, and he was a three-length winner on debut at Te Rapa in May before finishing third in the Waikato Steeplechase (3900m), fourth in the Koral Steeplechase (4250m) and a last-start third in the Grand National Steeplechase (5600m). Sunday’s extremely testing Heavy10 track held no fears for the tough 11-year-old, who has recorded 12 of his wins in those gruelling winter conditions. While others began to fade in the final 1000m of Sunday’s race, Nedwin’s wet-track excellence and formidable stamina shone through. The lightly raced up-and-comer Fourty Eight was sent out as a $3.20 favourite and led for most of the race, but Nedwin and his rider Hamish McNeill pressed forward out of the pack and were breathing down his neck just before the home turn. Nedwin took command in the straight and forged clear, pulling away to win by three and a half lengths. Last-start Grand National Steeplechase winner Captains Run finished strongly into second, with a tiring Fourty Eight a gallant third. “It’s exciting to see him doing this in steeplechases now,” McDougal said. “I think the trip down south for the Grand National Steeplechase helped him. He’s really mastered his craft now, so it’s very exciting.” Nedwin is now rated a $4.20 third favourite for the $200,000 Ben and Ryan Foote Great New Zealand Steeplechase (6200m) at Te Aroha on September 21. Jesko remains the favourite at $2.60, with Captains Run on the second line at $3.80 after Sunday’s eye-catching finish. McDougal, who represented the stable on course at Te Aroha while Nelson recuperates from recent knee surgery, suggested a tilt at the Great New Zealand Steeplechase is likely for Nedwin. “I’ll have to talk to the big boss at home, but I imagine we’ll be back here for that race in three weeks’ time,” McDougal said. “I think you’ll see him (Nelson) here for that meeting too.” McNeill has no doubt that Nedwin can be among the key chances again for the New Zealand jumps season’s grand finale. “He’s a top animal and I’m looking forward to riding him again in three weeks,” the expat Scottish jockey said. “He’ll improve off this run. He was having a good blow after the race today. I think I can ride him the same way again, and the 6200m distance will be right up his alley. “He revelled in the mud today. He’s won on very deep Wellington tracks more than once, so I was very confident coming into today. “Credit to Corinna, who instilled a lot of confidence in me. She’s a real unsung hero. She and Paul are stalwarts of the game and it’s always good to knock off big races for them. “My parents are here today. My dad will probably start crying if I talk about him too much – he’s an emotional man like me and wears his heart on his sleeve.” View the full article

Less than a month after winning a maiden hurdle at Te Aroha, Hill Of Kings (NZ) (Time Test) returned to the same venue on Sunday and landed a much bigger prize – the $60,000 Pakuranga Hunt “Vale Lamu” Hurdle. The son of Time Test was bought for just $600 off Gavelhouse.com in February of 2023. He has won twice from 20 starts on the flat, but has quickly surpassed those achievements in an increasingly impressive hurdling career. Hill Of Kings was runner-up in two maiden hurdles at Woodville, then romped home by five and three-quarter lengths at Te Aroha on July 27. He returned to Woodville for an open hurdle on August 17, where he finished fourth after mixing his jumping. Trainer Shaun Phelan and jockey Jay Kozaczek hatched a plan for Sunday’s feature that would help the six-year-old to size up each fence, while also keeping him away from the worst part of the energy-sapping Heavy10 ground. Kozaczek positioned Hill Of Kings a long way out from the running rail throughout the 3100m journey, settling in sixth spot and much wider on the track than any of his 11 rivals. He got into a smooth rhythm and measured his jumps well throughout the race. In contrast, the front-running favourite Billy Boy had a torrid time with sustained pressure from Odysseus and then Mont Ventoux. That pressure sapped Billy Boy’s energy and he began to fade out of contention coming down the side of the track. Hill Of Kings, meanwhile, was building into his work with ominous ease. Mont Ventoux rounded the home turn with a clear lead, but Hill Of Kings swept up alongside him and outfinished him down the straight. He went on to win by two and three-quarter lengths from Squire, with another five lengths back to Suliman and Mont Ventoux. “Shaun knows better than me,” Kozaczek said. “He wanted me to keep him very wide and away from the worst part of the track. It couldn’t have gone any better.” Hill Of Kings has now had 25 starts for four wins, four placings and $95,245 in stakes. Sunday’s win marked a welcome change of fortunes in the Pakuranga Hunt Hurdle for Phelan, who won the race as a jockey with Monarch Chimes (2017) but has had some frustrating experiences as a trainer. “I was aiming Pacheco at this race last year but he went amiss,” he said. “A few years before that, my father (Craig) and I thought Bay Rocker would be hard to beat and he didn’t get to the race either. But it’s a big thrill with this horse today – he’s a real stable favourite. “He’s a pretty handy horse, and full credit to Jay. He looked at me like I was an idiot when I gave him those instructions, but it paid off. “We walked the track and it’s just so wet out there. The outside part is definitely the place to be. “He also had a bit of an issue in his last start where he was in behind horses and made some mistakes in his jumping. We wanted him to concentrate on his jumping and get him going well. “He’s a mudlark, so the conditions didn’t bother him today. I was surprised how short he was in the market ($6.80), I thought he’d be closer to $20. But obviously the punters got it right. ”Hill Of Kings is now the $4 favourite for the $150,000 J Swap Great New Zealand Hurdle (4200m) at Te Aroha on September 19. Berry The Cash ($5), Suliman ($5), Lord Spencer ($8), Quid ($8) and Verry Flash ($8) are the others in single figures. View the full article