Trainer Andrew Forsman is looking forward to getting his Group One winner Aegon (NZ) (Sacred Falls) back to a mile at Otaki on Saturday in the Gr.1 Trackside Otaki-Maori WFA Classic.
The six-year-old son of Sacred Falls has been freshened since running 10th in the Gr.1 Zabeel Classic (2050m) at Pukekohe on Boxing Day, and Forsman believes he has thrived with the break.
“I think the time between runs will be good for him,” said Forsman, who also part-owns the gelding.
Aegon was tested beyond a mile for just the second time in the Zabeel Classic, having also competed in the 2021 edition of the race, and he will return to the comfort zone of his pet distance this weekend.
“He just didn’t really round out the 2000m,” Forsman said. “We weren’t really sure, he has never had a proper crack at it, but he did get his fair chance to do it on Boxing Day and it wasn’t to be.
“We freshened him up and are going back to a mile, where we know he performs well, and if it is a truly run race, the smallish field will help him too and he should run really well. There is good depth to the field and there are a few classy ones, which is good, hopefully that means it is run at a genuine tempo, and if that is the case the best horse will win it.”
Forsman isn’t sure what path Aegon will take post Saturday’s contest, but said it is likely he will cross the Tasman to join his Flemington barn.
“There are not a heap of options beyond Saturday for him, so we will just let Saturday dictate where we head,” he said.
Closer to his Cambridge base on Saturday, Forsman will line-up Red Sea (NZ) (Pierata) in the Gr.3 Fairview Matamata Slipper (1200m).
The two-year-old son of Pierata has had two starts to date, finishing runner-up on debut behind subsequent TAB Karaka Millions 2YO (1200m) winner Velocious (Written Tycoon), before running fifth in the Gr.2 Wakefield Challenge Stakes (1100m) at Trentham in December.
Bred and raced by Cambridge Stud principals Brendan and Jo Lindsay, Red Sea has subsequently been gelded and Forsman believes that will benefit the promising juvenile.
“He has been gelded and I think that will help him, he will just be a little more focussed,” he said. “He was sharp in his trial the other day, but he does like the polytrack. He is one of those horses that can ping along on it pretty well, so I wouldn’t read too much into that.
“He will go into the race with improvement fitness-wise compared to a few others, but he has got good ability and I am sure he will give a good account of himself.”
Elite-level targets are in the offing for Red Sea if he performs well this weekend.
“We are running him on Saturday to set him up for hopefully some options around the corner, whether it’s Ellerslie (Gr.1 Sistema Stakes, 1200m) or the (Manawatu) Sires’ Produce (Gr.1, 1400m) a bit later on. Getting a run into him on Saturday will certainly keep those options open,” Forsman said.
