By Jonny Turner
Established Group 1 performers will take on a wave of hopefuls from the intermediate grades in the New Zealand Cup’s second qualifier of the season at Addington on Friday night.
B D Joe and Republican Party are among the biggest of names out to seal their starts in the country’s greatest race with victory in the New Brighton Cup.
Republican Party returns for trainers Cran and Chrissie Dalgety after trialling nicely in his only recent hit-out.
Though the Dalgetys would have preferred to trial their four-year-old again, Republican Party is forward enough to have a shot at automatic entry into the New Zealand Cup.
“Ideally he would head to another trial and that would bring him on again for a race start,” Cran Dalgety said.
“But after assessing all of our options, we felt he was forward enough to step out this week.”
“He is going to benefit from racing of course, with Cup Week still being some time away.”
“But his work has been very good and his trial was really good.”
“There aren’t too many of the real big bangers there this week, so we go in hopeful we have the class to make our mark.”
Republican Party will have his first standing start in the New Brighton Cup.
His camp is hopeful he has the attitude to handle it.
“He has been good in his practice at home and he has been a very sensible horse right the way through,” Dalgety said.
“He hasn’t had any issues at the trials and we hope it can be the same on race day.”
Though he comfortably made the New Zealand Cup field last year, securing a qualifying ticket would be a bonus for B D Joe who also returns in the New Brighton Cup.
Driver Tim Williams expects the Stonewall Stud pacer to be an even more potent force this spring after he completed a full year of open class racing.
A campaign that spanned the North and South Islands and Australia has helped B D Joe harden to the rigours of top-level all-age racing.
“He definitely got better as the year went on, having that racing at that level and doing plenty of travelling seems to have hardened him up a bit physically and mentally,” Williams said.
“He did well when he was out too and he seems to have come back a bit stronger again.”
B D Joe starts from the outside of the front line on Friday night and Williams isn’t exactly sure whether that will suit the horse.
“His manners got better as the season went on, too.”
“I’m not sure whether drawing the outside of the front line will be good for him or not, but hopefully he can get away.”
“He has had two trials and he seems really good, he’s done everything asked of him and this race looks a good starting point for him.”
As a Group 1 winner, B D Joe’s stablemate Allamericanlover is another of the proven top-level pacers out to hold out the many intermediate pacers out to stake their New Zealand Cup claims in Friday night’s feature.
