Mime delivers for patient trainers
YESTERDAY’S Group II Travis Stakes was the payday Mime’s connections had been patiently awaiting.
The all-conquering Cambridge team of Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman have been in rare form this season, regularly producing big race winners but they wondered if Mime was ever going to add her name to the list.
The Mastercraftsman mare answered emphatically in the $100,000 Cambridge Jockey Club feature under a patient Craig Grylls ride.
‘‘I had to wait for the run,’’ Grylls said. ‘‘But when she got it she put a margin on them.’’
‘‘She’s been so unlucky this season,’’ Forsman said, sentiments echoed by Baker. ‘‘She deserved this win which was certainly helped by the step up to 2000 metres.’’
Mime was sold last year by her New Zealand owners to the China Horse Club.
The China Horse Club’s interests are widespread and have wholly owned or part-owned international Group I winners including Australia (English Derby), Tropaios (Singapore Gold Cup) and Johannes Vermeer (Grand Criterium).
It also has interests in the multiple Australian top flight winners and stallions like Dissident, Pride of Dubai and Press Statement.
Cambridge bloodstock consultant Michael Wallace works internationally for the China Horse Club and was on-course at Te Rapa.
‘‘She’s been there and thereabouts in her races and it’s just good to get one with her,’’ Wallace said. ‘‘Andrew and Murray have been saying they couldn’t wait to get her to 2000 metres and she showed why today.’’
Wallace turned his thoughts to Queensland after the win and the mare’s trainers were thinking along the same lines.
‘‘The Doomben Cup in three weeks would suit her,’’ Wallace said.
The 2000m race would give the 4-year-old the chance to add a Group I win to her five career wins.
Outsider Endean Rose ran the race of her life for co-owner and trainer Ian Kennedy to finish second, a long neck behind the winner, with a nose back to Sofia Rose in third.
Promising galloper Killarney had to race right up to his reputation to grab the honours in yesterday’s Rating 85 over 1400m.
Cambridge trainer Roger James has faith in the 4-year-old son of O’Reilly and hopes he can earn a trip to race in Australia as an older horse.
‘‘He’ll probably go for a spell now, but it will be at five and six that we will see the best of him,’’ James said. ‘‘He might be the kind TRISH DUNELL of horse good enough to race on the undercard in Australia one day.
‘‘He’ll get a mile and if he did things correctly, he might have been more decisive [today].’’
Jockey Matt Cameron said the big gelding needed a bit of persuasion to get the job done, but when he buckled down he hit the line strongly.
Killarney was bred by coowners Daniel and Elias Nakhle who race him with Greg Jones, Ron Balcombe and Jim Struthers.
James will be hoping the gelding, who he purchased at the 2014 Select sale at Karaka for $115,000, can match the deeds of his stakeswinning dam Irish Colleen, who won seven for the Nakhles.
Another rising talent Prince Hareem won the following race, the Premier 1600 for 3-year-olds.
The Iffraaj colt, like Killarney, had to be good to win as he gave Tiptronic a big start into the final stages of the race.
He was helped by Tiptronic’s waywardness and a desperate ride by jockey Danielle Johnson. AMARULA rediscovered his winning mojo in the Livamol Autumn Stakes (1400m) at Hastings yesterday.
The Hawke’s Bay track has been a happy hunting ground for the Peter McKay-trained son of Thorn Park owned by the trainer and his wife Kim.
Amarula had competed well in strong fields since his last win at Te Rapa back in the spring.
He gave the owners’ son Shaun his first black-type win when they prevailed in the 2015 Hawke’s Bay Guineas and he was in the saddle again for yesterday’s win.
Jimmy Choux found fame and fortune at Hastings during his racing days with several notable victories and in recent weeks his old home course has proved to be a successful stage for two of his talented sons.
The Rich Hill Stud-based stallion posted Group I wins in the Spring Classic and the Windsor Park Plate and the Group II Hawke’s Bay Guineas during an illustrious career that saw him crowned New Zealand’s Horse of the Year in 2010-2011.
Jimmy Choux’s son Bostonian is now spelling after remaining unbeaten in two appearances, the last of them at Hawke’s Bay where yesterday Jimmy Lincoln produced a tidy performance to win at the first time of asking.
From an inside alley, the colt made the running and he showed admirable fighting qualities to hold his rivals at bay in the straight.
‘‘He jumped and ran and kept out of trouble,’’ said trainer Lisa Latta, who paid $150,000 at Karaka for the horse on behalf of John Street’s Lincoln Farms Bloodstock.
The Awapuni horsewoman hinted that Jimmy Lincoln may now go for a break.
‘‘We got a nice track today, but we’re heading into the wetter tracks and he’s a bit better than that,’’ she said.
After clearing the gates quickly, Jimmy Lincoln travelled comfortably on the fence and he held a strong gallop under Masa Tanaka to beat Come In Spinner, another son of Jimmy Choux, and Van Halen.
‘‘He’s still quite green and gawked around,’’ Tanaka said. ‘‘I thought I was going to get caught, but he fought really well to the line.’’
‘ She’s been so unlucky this season.’ ANDREW FORSMAN ON MIME