12 March 2025
Roydon Bergerson is following a familiar path to the Gr.1 Courtesy Ford Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) with his talented juvenile Too Sweet (NZ) (Satono Aladdin).
Awapuni-based Bergerson prepared Wolverine (NZ) (Tavici) to win the Gr.2 Eclipse Stakes (1200m) in 2022, before going on to place in the $1 million Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) and the Sires’.
A filly by Satono Aladdin, Too Sweet was a winner on debut and also continued on to take out the Eclipse, but fell victim to a wide barrier draw in the Millions, ruling her out of a possible tilt at the Gr.1 Sistema Stakes (1200m) last Saturday.
“She just had such a tough run, drawn the outside and racing five-wide the whole way,” Bergerson said. “Following that, we decided to give her a quick spell and aim at the Sires’, as we did with Wolverine. She didn’t go to the Sistema either.
“She’s done really well in the meantime and has come back looking amazing really.”
Instead of tackling the Sistema, Bergerson opted to head back to the trials against her older counterparts at Foxton on Tuesday, where she was hard held by jockey Lily Sutherland throughout the 1000m heat with no running room in the final straight.
“I couldn’t ask for any more of her, she trialled very well, and Lily said she felt tremendous and was very strong to the line,” he said. “She just didn’t get a gap which didn’t worry me too much.
“Lily said she trialled better yesterday than two weeks before, she just ran out of puff there at Waipuk. She’s pulled up super and licked the bowl last night.
“I’ll probably take her to the races in between now and the Sires’ for an exhibition gallop to keep her up to the mark, she hasn’t raced for a while. I couldn’t be happier with her.”
Also appearing at Foxton was her older stablemate Bradman (NZ) (Pins), kicking off his autumn campaign over 850m. The seven-year-old was full of running under apprentice Jim Chung and was only caught late by Group One performer Express Yourself (NZ) (Shamexpress), a performance reflective of his condition this time in.
“He’s coming up super this year, he’s surprised us with how much he’s strengthened up,” Bergerson said. “He’s come back 40 kilos heavier than he’s ever been and he’s just a ball of muscle now.
“We’re just going to keep him off the firmer tracks, he touches his heels really badly and I think I made a mistake going to Waikato at the end of his last preparation, that really hurt him.”
Bradman picked up the Listed Flying Handicap (1400m) and a number of stakes placings last term, culminating in a narrow third in the Gr.3 Winter Cup (1600m). As a 94 rated-gelding, Bergerson is likely to stick to weight-for-age where possible with Bradman before tackling the Riccarton feature again in August.
“We’ll keep on the wet and stick to weight for age racing, he’s quite high in the winter ratings,” he said.
“I’ll try get back to the Winter Cup, that’ll be his main aim.”
Last-start winner Vee Vee (NZ) (Vadamos) will be Bergerson’s sole runner to the races this week, preparing for Wanganui’s Saturday meeting with a quiet hit-out over 1400m at Foxton. The son of Vadamos was a comfortable winner of that heat and will start top-weight in the Wanganui Motors 2040.
“We haven’t had a grass to gallop on and he can feel the poly a bit at times, so I elected to take him for a quiet trial and he’s done really well,” Bergerson said. “I expected him to do that because it was virtually jumpers having their first trial, but he’s got to the line really nicely.
“He’s got a good draw on Saturday and with a couple of kilos off, he should be very competitive.”
