Zapower wins at Rotorua

[Wandering Eyes]

Consistent performer Deebee Zapower (NZ) (Power) shrugged off a pair of average runs to bounce back to winning form at Rotorua on Sunday.

The six-year-old Power gelding had won impressively at Te Rapa back in August but then had no luck when finishing towards the rear at Te Rapa and Hastings at his next two starts.

Trainer Gavin Opie was prepared to overlook those efforts in favour of a positive effort on Sunday and got just what he was looking for from his charge.

Allowed to settle back off the speed by apprentice Niranjan Parmar, Deebee Zapower loomed into contention four wide rounding the home bend, before dashing clear to win comfortably by three lengths from Gwen’s Daughter.

“His last two runs looked bad on paper but actually weren’t as disappointing as some were saying,” Opie said.

“He had nothing go his way at either Hastings or Te Rapa, so we went into today with plenty of confidence

“He did it pretty easily in the end, so we can move forward and look at something better next time.”

Opie is eyeing a tilt at an open 1500m contest as the next target for his charge who has now won four of his 20 starts.

“He is getting up in the weights now so I think we will try for an open handicap next time,” he said.

“There is a nice 1500m open at Pukekohe at the end of the month and he will get some weight relief in it, which will suit him nicely.”

Opie is pleased with how his small team at Te Aroha has been performing in recent weeks with Just A Tipple (NZ) (Burgundy) also adding to the win record with three victories from his last six starts.

“Things have been going well for us and all of our horses seem to be rounding into form nicely,” he said.

“We only have a small team so getting wins from them on a Saturday is a real buzz.”

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