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Promising four-year-old Timberlake showed he had taken plenty out of his first-up run at Te Aroha recently when he raced away with a 1400m maiden contest at Matamata on Saturday. The Peter and Dawn Williams-trained four-year-old was sent out favourite at Te Aroha off the back of a tidy 1000m trial victory, where he fought on gamely in the worst part of the track for a meritorious third. Stepped up to 1400m, the Redwood gelding got well back in the early running for rider Ashvin Goindasamy before making ground strongly…

The Kevin Myers and Shaun Fannin combination proved nigh on impossible to beat over fences at Awapuni on Saturday when they took out four of the five jumping events including the two feature contests with Aigne winning the Manawatu ITM Awapuni Hurdles (2900m) before Game Percy added a second LJ Hooker Manawatu Steeplechase (4400m) to his record after success in the 2018 edition of the event. Fannin had produced perfectly judged rides aboard Interllectus and Locharburn to guide them to their maiden hurdle wins earlier in the day and was…

The Bjorn Baker-trained Kiss The Bride (NZ) (Savabeel) recorded his second consecutive win in the Gold Coast Turf Club Trophy (2400m), scoring by a half-length after getting the upper-hand in the closing stages over Birth Of Venus and Home Ground. The win provided jockey Josh Parr with a triumphant return to Sydney racing at Randwick, three months after being sidelined with a debilitating nerve disorder. The Group One-winning jockey had not ridden in town since May 13 after being diagnosed with brachial neuritis, an uncommon affliction which causes severe pain…

The aptly named Captaintwinkletoes showed his race rivals a clean pair of heels as he put a maiden win on the board at Awapuni on Saturday. The Jo Rathbone part owned and trained four-year-old had caught the eye when a close second to stablemate Wotablast at Wanganui on debut and was expected to take plenty of improvement from the run. That was clearly evident as Captaintwinkletoes provided jockey Rosie Myers with an armchair ride throughout the 2100m contest despite sitting three wide on the speed. Myers asked him to take…

The handicapper will determine whether Verry Elleegant (NZ) (Zed) gets a chance to deliver trainer Chris Waller his first Melbourne Cup but there is little doubt the mare is set for an outstanding spring. Verry Elleegant made a spectacular return at Randwick on Saturday to beat a high-class field in the Gr.1 Winx Stakes (1400m), overcoming a wide run to deny Star Of The Seas (NZ) (Ocean Park) in a Waller quinella. The champion trainer has his sights on the spring majors for Verry Elleegant but will only pursue a…

Trainer Nick Bishara admitted he woke up on Sunday morning and had to check his phone to make sure what he had seen at Royal Randwick on Saturday had actually taken place. Bishara was the original trainer of now multiple Group One winner Verry Elleegant during the three starts she had in New Zealand before crossing the Tasman. The Ardmore trainer and her breeder Don Goodwin are among a group of Kiwis who retain an ownership interest in the Chris Waller-trained galloper, that also includes fellow New Zealanders John and…

Talented six-year-old Sherrif (NZ) (High Chaparral) heads off on a journey on Saturday that could yet see him tackle the Gr.1 Livamol Classic (2040m) at Hastings on October 17. The starting point is the Colchester Engineering 1400 at Matamata, a race where the High Chaparral gelding will be confronted with a heavy track and 62kg to carry. Despite those unfavourable factors, Cambridge trainer Roger James is happy with Sherrif’s fitness and overall condition after two placed trials, at Te Rapa in July and Taupo last week. “Both trials were very…

Wanganui trainer Raymond Connors has taken out two of the last three editions of the Great Northern Steeplechase (6400m) with quality jumper Wise Men Say (NZ) (Yamanin Vital), and the marathon feature is once again his main target this year. The 11-year-old son of Yamanin Vital has finished fifth in his two starts over hurdles this preparation and Connors is happy with the way his gelding is tracking. He will contest the LJ Hooker Manawatu Steeplechase (4400m) at Awapuni on Saturday where he has been lumbered with 71kg, 4.5kg more…

After River Radiance (NZ) (Rip Van Winkle) overcame adversity to run a gallant first-up third in a Class 2 race over 1100m, trainer Mok Zhan Lun decided that the S$250,000 Merlion Trophy (1200m) on Sunday was worth a roll of the dice. “I was very happy with his last run (on August 8). He got galloped on and still came in third (to Sacred Rebel),” said Mok. “Without that incident, I’m not saying he would have won, but he could have finished closer. He came back with lacerations to his…