By Michael Guerin
In the end of the final push to the top of millionaire’s mountain was an easy one.
It was probably always going to be for Oscar Bonavena, who had panels on his rivals in the IRT Cambridge Flying Stakes Trot at Cambridge on Thursday night.
The nine-year-old was able to pull back to second last and after moving mid-race ended up in the one-one. From there the question was how big the margin would be.
The answer: five-and-a-quarter lengths as he raced into the millionaire’s club without breaking a sweat.
It was win 30 from start 76 for $1,018,558 in stakes, edging him into that most elite of trotting clubs.
But while the final step was easy the climb up that mountain was anything but.
It all started so well. Oscar was an instant hit for first trainer Phil Williamson, before being purchased by US-based Kiwi trainer Chris Ryder and Mark Purdon.
He even raced in the part-ownership of the late, great Roy Purdon for a while as Mark kept his legendary father involved in the industry.
Oscar was excellent in a short three-year-old career and magnificent for much of his four-year-old career before a luckless Australian campaign and then soon after the niggles started.
As they say, the faster you go the bigger the mess. And Oscar’s little legs went awfully fast.
As issues came and went it affected Oscar’s manners to the stage as a six-year-old he won only one of his 13 starts. Her looked set to become a cautionary tale of what happens to good horses who can’t stay sound and happy.
But two years ago things changed and the little horse who couldn’t became the little horse who could.
Oscar went on a rampage in the second half of that season, winning the Dominion Trot on his way to becoming Trotter of the Year.
Last year was trickier, with Just Believe coming from Australia to dominate our major trots but it is a measure of what a great little horse he is that Oscar came from behind the Victorian to beat him in the NZ Free-For-All on Show Day.
Oscar is still Oscar though. Such imperious form still mixed with a gallop in the score up of the National Trot on New Year’s Eve before he made his way to that mountain top on Thursday night.
Next stop will be Australia and an opportunity to turn the clock back five years to when he was the next kid on the block.
He is no longer new, no kid. He is our latest trotting milllionaire.
A horse who did it the hard way. A sprinting machine who has to turn warrior to get off the canvas more than once.
Oscar has turned out to be the horse we all hoped he would be.
It just took him longer to get there than we expected.
Oscar Bonavena is the 12th Australasian-bred trotting millionaire.
He joins :
Lyell Creek with $2,961,137.
Sundon’s Gift ($1,460,561)
I Can Doosit ($1,445,774)
Speeding Spur ($1,304,992)
Take A Moment ($1,164,356)
Stent ($1,156,750)
One Over Kenny ($1,098,007)
Keystone Del ($1,088,449)
Tornado Valley ($1,031,977)
Vulcan ($1,025,892)
Oscar Bonavena ($1,018,558)
Sundees Son ($1,010,667)
