Aspinal pots black

THE CHAMPAGNE glasses were clinking at Rotorua and Little Avondale Stud in the Wairarapa after Aspinal’s long overdue stakes win in the $50,000 Lion Red Plate.

After a career dogged by unlucky runs and bad draws, the six-yearold mare was running out of time to earn black type for her pedigree page – she’s 42 days in foal to champion sire Zabeel on Tuesday.

So when she outfinished Demophon and Veyron in the Listed race yesterday to claim her sixth win, co-trainer Tony Pike described it as one of his most satisfying.

‘‘She’s just short of top class but she should have won a stakes race by now,’’ Pike said.

‘‘She’s been thereabouts in a of good races.

‘‘ But motherhood obviously agrees with her as she’s racing in the best form of her career now.’’

Pike, who races the mare on lease from LA Stud with former New Zealand Thoroughbred CEO Paul Bittar, Tauranga electrician Stewart Brown and dairy farmer

lot

She’s been thereabouts in a lot of good races.

Rob Wilson, says they have until Aspinal is 120 days in foal before she must retire.

‘‘Hopefully, we can get another one before she heads to the broodmare paddock. I’m looking at racing her at Riccarton on the middle day of the cup carnival [November 14].’’

Aspinal’s two options are the Group III $100,000 Stewards Stakes ( 1200m), or the Listed $ 50,000 Valachi Downs Canterbury Breeders’ Stakes (1400m).

‘‘ She could get quite a bit of weight in the Stewards but she’d get in well in the fillies’ and mares’ race.’’

Favourite Veyron lost no admirers with his gutsy fresh-up third, just a length from the win- ner, after being trapped three wide throughout.

A GEM of a ride by Leith Innes on country cups exponent Noble Warrior landed the Listed $50,000 Rotorua Plate for Waiuku trainers Grant and Tana Shaw.

Innes, who notched a hat-trick on the six-year-old, after wins on Aspinal in the Lion Red Plate and Calgacus, started from an outside barrier yet manouevred the horse into a perfect possie handy to the leaders, before making his winning challenge along the rails.

Noble Warrior’s long-head win over Jeu De Cartes gave the Karioitahi beach trainers their biggest success – the horse’s previous scalps included the Greymouth and Whangarei Cups.

Innes’ bag shot him to third equal on the jockeys’ premiership with 21 wins behind leader Lisa Allpress (32) and Matt Cameron.

Cameron also posted three wins at Rotorua, on Mac Orla, Irish Encore and outsider Miss Pelear, advancing to 22 wins.