By Jonny Turner
Two rookies have the chance to upstage the established open class stars at Addington on Friday.
Shut Up N Dance and Castelo De Vide both return after producing emphatic wins and signalling they are horses with exciting futures in their last visits to the track.
Shut Up N Dance made the harness racing world stand up and take notice of her talent when she produced one of the most incredible debut performances seen at Addington in recent history.
The Regan Todd trained mare exploded away from her rivals to score by a massive ten and a half lengths in her sensational 1980m effort.
“I only run the rein over her rump when she went ran down the side in 27sec but it didn’t feel like we were going that fast,” driver Matthew Williamson said.
“When I asked her to go properly she just exploded, it was incredible.”
“She is a very fast horse.”
Her incredible debut win suggests Shut Up N Dance will have no troubles stepping up in grade in race 10 on Friday.
Williamson agreed and summed the situation up well.
“She has just run less than two seconds outside the national record.”
“I can’t see it being a problem.”
“It’s not a bad field and you have to respect some of the other horses in it.”
“But she is very smart and she has drawn well, so I would expect her to be pretty hard to beat.”
Rock Legend (2), who starts inside Shut Up N Dance (3) looks the hardest horse for the favourite to beat.
The Hayden Cullen trained three-year-old has been luckless in the first two starts of his new campaign.
Trainer Darren Keast admitted he has had Castelo De Vide wrapped in cotton wool since his emphatic eight-length win in the Cup Day maiden during the New Zealand Cup Carnival.
With the country’s leading three-year-olds at Alexandra Park to contest the Northern Derby and a New Zealand Derby start on the line in the Lazarus Stakes there seems no better time for Keast to bring his classy pacer back to the track.
“I thought now is the best time, better than ever, because all of the good ones are up north for the Derby,” Keast said.
“I am happy with him and a bit nervous at the same time.”
Castelo De Vide has impressed with two trial wins ahead of his resumption in a quality line up of three-year-olds.
And they have Keast hopeful of a bold return from the pacer.
“I would like to think he is fit enough to win, but anything he does he will improve on.”
“This is the pinnacle of this time in because the winner gets an automatic start in the Derby.”
“So if he was to come out and win it would be a big sigh of relief.”
Bettor Call Me, Pace N Pride and Dashing Major look the main dangers to Castelo De Vide in Friday’s 1980m feature.
The open class feature on the Addington card sees the return of A G’s White Socks after his New Zealand Cup campaign ended because of a minor injury.
The Greg and Nina Hope trained seven-year-old has had one Rangiora trial to prepare for his return, running second to Who Made Who.
The Robert Dunn trained trio of Steel The Show, Henry Hubert and Classie Brigade are sure to give A G’s White Socks plenty to chase in Friday’s 2600m handicap.
