Clarify shows winning form in time for title defence

Last season’s Dunstan Feeds Stayers Championship Final (2200m) winner Clarify finally bounced back to winning form when he took out one of the qualifying events for this year’s championship at Ellerslie on Saturday.

The Peter McKay trained stayer had found success hard to come by in the intervening 11 months since his January 1 victory despite performing with credit in most assignments in the interim. A run of two minor placings in his last three starts augured well for Saturday and so it proved as the Savabeel five-year-old produced his best as he looks to defend his Dunstan crown next month.

A change of tactics that saw rider Shaun McKay sit Clarify just behind the early pace paid dividends as the pair loomed into contention early in the run home before finishing best to win by a stylish three length margin.

Trainer Peter McKay had been confident before the race that he had his charge back to his best after he had missed an opportunity to start in the Gr. 3 Christchurch Casino New Zealand Cup (3200m) last month.

“I had been working him over ground, but the Saturday before we were meant to head south, he tied up on me, so we decided it might be time to back off him slightly,” he said.

“We’ve freshened him up and hopefully he can go towards the Dunstan now. He’s had a mixed preparation, as his first three runs were all at Hawke’s Bay on the off tracks, which he didn’t seem to like. He then went to Wellington, where he went a nice race, but things went wrong after that.”