Sentimental win for Little Matey

Matamata trainer Glenn Old obliged his 85-year-old uncle Don Roberts when he produced Little Matey for a sentimental win in Saturday’s $12,500 Highfield Country Estate Retirement Village 2000 at Te Awamutu. Little Matey was backing up from an eighth placing at Matamata five days earlier and while Old was surprised the Senor Pete seven-year-old gelding had won, he was delighted for Roberts, whose great nephew Tyler Old was killed after being trapped in a fertiliser spreader at Okauia last month. Roberts was visibly moved by Little Matey’s win. “I’m absolutely thrilled about that,” he said. “He came over on the same truck as The Muffin Man [who had won earlier on the programme] and I’ve back them both, so I’ll go home smiling.”

Cameron confirms his chase

Two winners at Te Awamutu on Saturday has convinced jockey Matt Cameron to make a concerted effort to chase his first jockeys’ premiership. Cameron is six wins behind premiership leader Opie Bosson, with 131 wins to Bosson’s 137. It would be sweet revenge for Cameron, who went agonisingly close last year when pipped by Lisa Allpress in the last few days of the season after leading for most of the previous 11 months. “I hadn’t really made up my mind to go for it until I managed to cut the margin over the weekend and worked out with my manager [Gary Cossey] what the opportunities would be over the next few weeks,” Cameron said. “Gary believes I will have some good rides coming up, especially with the Logan team at their home meetings at Ruakaka on the 13th and 20th, so I’m going to give it a go.” Cameron is suspended this week but believes he can still beat Bosson. “Last year Lisa managed to chase me down so I know what the pressure is like when you are trying to defend a lead, so seeing as I’m doing the chasing this time I hope I can go one better,” Cameron said. “I’m prepared to travel to the South Island like I did last year so I think I will have about 13 racedays to catch Opie if I can.”

Paynes combine for Cup win

Michelle Payne admits she put her love for her brother to the test to gain the winning Queensland Cup ride on Turner Bayou. Payne’s persistence paid off when her brother Patrick, the trainer of Turner Bayou, finally agreed to book her to ride the son of Zabeel in the Cup. “I know what a good stayer this horse is and I was at Patrick for weeks and weeks to put me on in this race,” she said. “It was only in the last week he gave me the nod for the ride.” Bred by Karapiro’s Paul and Cushla Smithies, Turner Bayou’s win was a quick turnaround in fortunes for Payne at Eagle Farm on Saturday after she was first past the post a race earlier only to be relegated to fourth on protest. She was concerned when a pre-race plan to track the favourite Ibicenco came unstuck. “Then I copped a squeeze at the 800m mark and he lost balance but fortunately he was able to pick himself up quickly.” Payne said she was confident of winning when Turner Bayou was cruising on the home turn. “He tracked into the race really nicely and being a genuine stayer when I needed his stamina to kick in it did,” she said. Turner Bayou will be spelled before he is aimed at next year’s Adelaide Cup.

Atomic Force returns at Caulfield

Gr I-winning sprinter Atomic Force has been given the all-clear to get back the races, with Saturday’s Sir John Monash Stakes at Caulfield his target. Trainer Darren Smith and connections had to pull the pin on Atomic Force’s autumn campaign after his ninth behind Black Caviar in the TJ Smith Stakes in April. The gelding injured a muscle in the TJ Smith and was given a few weeks off, missing any chance to race at the Brisbane carnival. He showed he was ready for a return with a barrier trial win at Gosford last week. “He pulled up a bit average after the TJ,” Smith said. “He had a bit of a muscle injury in his hind quarters so we decided to give him some time off to get over it. He trialled well and we’ll see how he works [today] before we make a final decision but the plan is to take him to Caulfield for the Listed race and then see where we go from there.” The Bletchingly Stakes on July 27 is also on the programme and if Atomic Force doesn’t race in the Monash, he will resume in that race. Michael Rodd has been booked to ride Atomic Force in the Monash which is over 1100m, the distance of seven of his 11 wins including the 2011 Gr I Galaxy. Atomic Force crossed the Tasman to claim his second Gr I win in last year’s Railway Stakes at Ellerslie.

Sweeney rapt with Riziz

The experience of half a century in racing set trainer Ken Sweeney apart from some of his more excitable colleagues as he digested the success of his talented sprinter Riziz at Flemington on Saturday. “We’ll look at a couple of those Gr III sprints over the next few weeks,” Sweeney said. “He’s a very nice horse, but I’m not getting carried away. You can’t be disappointed if you do it like that.” Sweeney rated Riziz good enough in the autumn to run in the Gr I Goodwood Handicap in Adelaide, in which he finished a luckless seventh. Riziz was then a three-length winner of the Gold Topaz at Swan Hill last month before stepping up to the slightly more ambitious goal of Saturday’s Listed All Victorian Sprint Series Final (1200m). In other Flemington features, Magnifique Soleil relished the fast pace in the Listed Winter Championship (1600m), coming from near last to score by a short head, while patched-up stayer De Fine Lago ended the winning streak of short-priced favourite Cooldini to win the Banjo Paterson Series Final.

Breslin eyes record season

Impressive Awapuni winner Mighty Matt provided trainer Mike Breslin with his 25th winner this season on Saturday, a tally that equals the Awapuni-based trainer’s best, but one that he is keen to increase in the coming weeks. “We’ve certainly had a good year and to equal our best efforts to date is nice but I’m keen to set a new mark if I can before the season ends,” Breslin said. “The good thing is I still have a bit of ammunition left to do it with and it could even be this guy that does it for us. There is a three-year-old mile at New Plymouth in a fortnight which he could go to or there is another three-year-old race over 1400m at Te Rapa a week later so there are two good options for him.” Breslin said Mighty Matt had the potential to make it to open class. “You don’t often get horses that win four races in a season and especially as a three-year-old. He seems to be as adept on a decent track as he is on a wet surface so that will also help him when he steps out of age group racing next season.” Breslin is looking forward to the new season with the unbeaten Salamanca, who won his only two starts as a two-year-old, and the exciting Fastnet Rock gelding Ringo, who won three from four starts.