4yrold faces biggest test Ronald J capable of winning cup: Nairn
WELLINGTON: Three generations will again combine when 4yrold Rock On Wood contests the listed Anzac Mile (1600m) at Awapuni today.
The handsome galloper has a tidy record of four wins from eight starts and has only once finished further back than fourth for Levin trainer Leanne Elliot, who partowns the son of Redwood with her mother, Jill.
Son Ryan, the nation’s leading apprentice jockey, will again be in the saddle.
‘‘It is going to be his biggest test to date, so we will see how we go,’’ Leanne Elliot said of Rock On Wood.
‘‘I think were going to have to go back a bit from the wide draw (15). Hopefully we’re not too far off them and we certainly would have liked a better draw.’’
A former hurdle and highweight rider, Elliot has been patient with Rock On Wood. The gelding had not raced for the best part of 11 months until his resumption in February with an impressive win at Hawke’s Bay.
Rock On Wood handled the subsequent rise in grade with aplomb when winning over 1600m at Awapuni last start.
‘‘I got him in quite early for his 4yrold season and he just wasn’t doing that well and he didn’t carry a lot of weight, so I put him out for six weeks,’’ Elliot said.
‘‘Then I got him up again and I had him entered for Stratford and he sliced the front of his leg and required a few stitches, so I had to wait for that to heal.’’
Elliot said that time and maturity were the making of the horse.
‘‘He has strengthened up a whole lot more.
‘‘He is quite a quirky horse, but he was a lot quirkier earlier on. He’s good at the track but he does sweat up a little bit at the races and that is just him . . .
‘‘I’m quite looking forward to getting him over a bit more ground. I think he will handle it. Earlier on he was good at a mile, but he settles well and I think he should get over further.’’
Rock On Wood has been the subject of numerous overseas offers, but Elliot has been loath to part with the talented galloper as her family is getting great pleasure from racing him.
‘‘He is the only one we have racing and we are just breaking in a couple at the moment. We only have a couple in at a time, really.
‘‘It is really great to have Ryan riding Rock On Wood and that is what mum loves, too. She is a big part of it all.
‘‘It is her big passion. She loves all of her animals, especially horses, and that is what her life is all about at the moment.’’ — NZ Racing Desk TROTTING’S magic man believes he can pull off his second 201 group 1 winner this month in tomorrow night’s
Anzac Cup.
Leeston trainer Paul Nairn is one of the most respected in the industry so it was rare to see him produce a winner at big odds when Lotamuscle blew past hot favourite Enhance Your Calm in the $100,000 New Zealand Trotting Derby at Addington on April 5.
The pair clash again in the $60,000 Sires’ Stakes at Alexandra Park’s premier meeting tomorrow night and while both have secondline draws, it is tempting for punters that Lotamuscle is rated a $6.50 chance in early markets compared with Enhance Your Calm’s $1.35 quote.
But while Nairn thinks Lotamuscle can win with the right sitsprint trip it is later in the night he believes he has the blowout chance in the $100,000 Anzac Cup.
Nairn has both Ronald J and Habibi Inta in the outstanding openclass field and said a huge improvement from Ronald J would not be a surprise.
At his best, the big trotter has looked to have serious Xfactor but has let punters down with a pair of sixth placings in his last two starts.
‘‘I was disappointed by his last start so we had him checked out and he had a few issues.
‘‘He had a few minor soreness issues we worked on and also had a high white blood cell count, which suggests he had an infection.
‘‘That has been fixed, too . . . ‘‘So with a good draw and some gate speed I think he can be handy or even lead and I can’t see any reason he can’t win, even allowing for how strong the field is.’’
With the TAB bookies opening Ronald J at $21, that gives punters a real chance in one of the best trotting races of the season.
Auckland Cup winner Turn It Up will start an oddson favourite in the $100,000 Taylor Mile having opened at $1.60, even though he has drawn outside Miracle Mile winner Spankem.
The latter opened at $3.10 but was backed into $2.60 last night in the sprint from which Triple Eight has been scratched.
Unbeaten filly Sweet On Me is the $1.16 good thing for the night in the Caduceus Club Classic. —NZME