Group One wins for Legato and Bonny Lass at Te Rapa
Matamata trainers Ken and Bev Kelso have long believed Legarto had the potential to excel over 2000m, and their stable star proved them right on Saturday with a sparkling performance in the Gr.1 Herbie Dyke Stakes (2000m) at Te Rapa.
Legarto was a Group One superstar on both sides of the Tasman as a three-year-old last season. She blew her rivals off the Riccarton track in a five-length New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) romp in the spring, then ventured to Melbourne in March and launched a stunning burst from nowhere to become the first NZ-trained winner of the Australian Guineas (1600m) at Flemington.
An outstanding first-up win at Ellerslie in mid-January earned Legarto red-hot favouritism for the inaugural Elsdon Park Aotearoa Classic (1600m) on Karaka Millions night, where she was again a victim of circumstances but flashed home for second.
The step up to 2000m in the Herbie Dyke Stakes was always going to be the key to Legarto’s four-year-old campaign, and yesterday she answered the stamina question in no uncertain terms.
Barrier one had the potential to pose a few problems for the renowned fast-finisher, but regular rider Ryan Elliot got her off the fence and into clear air by the back straight. Legarto enjoyed a comfortable run in fourth, one off the rail, keeping the defending champion Sharp ‘N’ Smart firmly in her sights as he sat on the outside of the front-running Mazzolino.
By the home turn, it was Elliot’s time to push the button on Legarto, and she quickened and went past Sharp ‘N’ Smart with more than 200m remaining.
But there was another stern test to come for Legarto yet, with proven Group One 2000m mare Campionessa sweeping up alongside her. Legarto saw that challenge coming and lifted again, holding Campionessa at bay by half a length.
“Everything went to plan,” Elliot said. “I said to Ken that I would just let her hold her spot, and if I could get her one off, I’d do so. Everything worked out perfectly, and there was just no trouble from 600m onwards.
“She came around the corner and I wasn’t going for her yet – just holding her together. She started pricking her ears and just waiting for them a little bit. But once Campionessa came up to her, she really fought hard, as she does.”
Meanwhile, one of the unluckiest horses in the top echelon of New Zealand racing in recent times, Bonny Lass turned things around with a supreme front-running performance in Saturday’s Gr.1 BCD Group Sprint (1200m) at Te Rapa.
The $400,000 weight-for-age feature was the first Group One victory for the Super Easy mare, whose long run of misfortune dates back to a raceday scratching from the Gr.1 Sistema Railway (1200m) on New Year’s Day last year.
She returned for another shot at that race a year later and was knocked sideways in the straight, recovering admirably and building back her momentum to surge into second behind Waitak.
The luckless Lass had a deserved change of fortune yesterday. Overlooked at $17 odds in a field headed by undefeated threeyear-old Crocetti and four other Group One winners, Bonny Lass dominated from the moment the gates opened. The five-yearold was driven from her outside barrier by jockey Craig Grylls and soon found the lead, and that was where she stayed.
“The plan was to be positive from the outside gate,” Grylls said. “She jumped better than anything else, and there didn’t seem to be a real torrent of speed. I thought I’d take it up, and I had a pretty soft lead. I felt like I was getting it easy enough, and we all know how game she is. She travelled well until close to the 200m, and then I went for her and she had a good kick. I could hear Crocetti coming, but she’s just so determined and kept fighting him off. She deserved that.
“This is very satisfying. She’s such an honest wee girl, and this just tops it all.”