Trainer tips it right with Valley Girl
SEVERAL burly stars came out to play at Ruakaka on Saturday.
Fresh back from spells, Valley Girl, Hasselhoof, Stolen Dance and Ryan Mark dominated pre-race discussions and the burly bunch performed with credit in the 1200m dash.
Big, powerful mare Valley Girl launched her 4-year-old campaign in brilliant fashion charging home to win the race from outsider Biggin Hill.
Valley Girl’s Ruakaka stablemate Hasselhoof rounded the race off strongly for third ahead of Stolen Dance and Shezhardtocatch while Ryan Mark was making good late ground down the outside.
Of those, Biggin Hill will be the sole absentee from the season’s first Group I race the Makfi Challenge Stakes (1400m) in three weeks time.
On appearance, all Makfi candidates will improve in fitness and condition safely through Saturday’s race heading towards Hastings.
Just over five lengths covered the eighthorse field as they thundered past the winning post in 1:13.28 on a deteriorating track, the last 600 in 35.13.
Jockey Danielle Johnson had perfectly spotted in fourth early leading pair of Shezhardtocatch Hill.
When she launched the Mastercraftsman mare the response was as immediate as it was devastating.
She bounded clear of the gallant Biggin Hill while a fresh and feisty Hasselhoof got home attractively.
‘‘He did pull quite hard early,’’ Hasselhoof’s jockey Matthew Cameron said. ‘‘And Valley Girl behind the and Biggin he’s still got a bit of meat on him.’’
Cameron is looking forward to the Tavistock gelding getting to the 1400m of the Makfi and the 1600 of the Windsor Park Plate on the second day of the Hastings carnival.
‘‘It was a super effort today,’’ Johnson said of the winner. ‘‘She will improve so much but had the class to sprint well.’’
Valley Girl will tackle the Makfi and possibly head to Melbourne.
Earlier her stablemate Mongolian indicated strong spring prospects fresh-up win in a 3-year-old 1000m.
Saturday’s sprint will prove well short of the Fastnet Rock colt’s optimum distance as the season unfolds but his class was enough to get him home.
‘‘I’ve always rated the horse and he won nice and he can only improve - Donna and Chris had him looking magnificent,’’ winning jockey Leith Innes said. then Falcon with a