Friday Flash – 29th September 2023

Headline News

Fortuna 3yo Filly RUBICON CROSSING makes her Australian debut at Mornington Saturday 30^thSeptember
 
Solid efforts by Fortuna trialists in this past week

Imperatriz Ready for Group 1 Test for Te Akau at Moonee Valley

Fortuna has 5 runners this weekend over three jurisdictions, Australia, Singapore and New Zealand
 
Australia – Mornington

RUBICON CROSSING contests the Benchmark 64 event for 3yo Fillies Saturday 30^th September – Race 1 @12.10pm Aus time (3.10pm NZT) and will be ridden by Harry Coffey from Barrier 2. A 2yo winner on debut in NZ a year ago, she was Stakes placed in subsequent 2yo racing – now transferred to the Te Akau Cranbourne stable, she impressed when running a tidy 2^nd placing at the recent Cranbourne jumpouts. Always hard to line up NZ form against Aus form, particularly with Sprinters, but she has travelled well, has worked well and showed a bit in her jumpout – is 3^rdFave with the bookies at $7.50/2.05 fixed odds – can run into the money from her nice draw

Singapore

ELLIOT NESS  races in the Class 4 1100m Polytrack Saturday 30^th with apprentice Clyde Leck, claiming 1kg, aboard from an outside barrier. A speedy type who has won three times in Singapore and holds the track record this trip and surface, he has a really difficult task from his wide draw. Pace is expected to be brutally fast in this, so a canny ride from the draw and a few ounces of luck and he can feature in the finish

ENTERTAINER races in the Class 4 1100m Polytrack Saturday 30^th with apprentice Fadzli Yusoff, claiming 2kg, aboard from a mid field draw. An eight time winner in Singapore, “Joker” has been out of form in recent runs, but has had difficult draws to contend with. Has got to a dangerous place in the ratings, but does need to step up here to feature.

New Zealand

BEAU GESTE contests the Open Hurdles at Woodville Sunday 1^st October – Race 3 @ 1.18pm with Shaun Fannin to ride. Is a very talented jumper but had interrupted start to the season – looks well suited here and has the champ jumps rider aboard – each way

KHAFEEF races in the Open Steeples at Woodville – Race 4 @ 2.30. Has won over the Hurdles earlier this year but is not known for handling heavy conditions – will need a lot of things to go right to feature

Matamata Trackwork

No Fortuna timed trackwork this week

Singapore Trackwork

Saturday 23rd September

KING ARTHUR (AWAH)600-42; PRINCE LONHRO (ASLAM)1000/600-38;; DECEPTION (ZAKI)600-42; GUN(ASLALM)1000/600-38;

Tuesday 26th September

ELLIOT NESS (YUSOFF)800/600-40.5; DECEPTION
(ZAKI)800-40; ENTERTAINER (YUSOFF)800/600-39.5; KING ARTHUR (AWAH)600-41;

Fortuna 3yo Filly RUBICON CROSSING makes her Australian debut at Mornington Saturday 30^thSeptember

Exciting times for “Cube’s” large ownership group as she makes her Aus debut this week. A debut winner in NZ as a 2yo (Whanganui Sept 2022), she subsequently ran very well at her subsequent 2yo starts, including being Stakes placed. By Rubick and a very speedy type better suited to shorter trips, the Training Team recommended that she do her future racing out of the Cranbourne barn and that advice was accepted with alacrity by her owners. She ran a lovely 2^nd at the Cranbourne jumpouts recently and is all set to put her best foot forward over the coming months. She will be Fortuna’s first runner from the Cranbourne Stable

Solid efforts by Fortuna trialists in this past week

Six Fortuna runners went to the trials this week in three jurisdictions.

3yo Fleet Footed (Zoustar) was first out of the blocks on Monday at Cranbourne. Haviing his first public outing in the Fortuna Silks, he was up on the speed the whole trip with Mick Dee aboard and went to the line a clear winner

Tuesday on the Cambridge Synthetic saw three runners – the first was our newly acquired Stayer, Zedwilldo, who was strong to the line for a 2nd placing with Warren Kennedy aboard. He will do his future racing out of the Cranbourne barn and will head to Victoria on 10th October

Court of Appeal, our 3yo by Eminent out of a Zabeel mare, impressed when running home strongly for 3rd, with Warren Kennedy aboard – she will make her raceday debut at Taupo 11th October

Vivacious, our 3yo Filly by Dundeel, caught the eye at her very first trial, she was just nutted on the line in the hands of Opie Bosson – Opie gave her a big thumbs up post trial. Click HERE to see the replay. She has grown a couple of legs these past few weeks, so one to keep an eye on. She will trial again at Matamata 10th October

Up in Singapore, we had two runners having their first Singapore trials, both running 2nd – the first of these was the 3yo Gun (Extreme Choice) and the other was our 4yo, Prince Lonhro (Lonhro). Both of these will have another trial before making their Singapore debuts shortly after that

Imperatriz Ready for Group 1 Test for Te Akau at Moonee Valley
An intriguing evening at “The Valley” with Imperatriz stepping out to contest what will be for our friends at Te Akau Racing, their 1st Group One attempt from the new Cranbourne Stable – see story below from the NZ Racing Desk

There has been plenty of intrigue on whether the A$20 million carrot of The Everest (1200m) would prove too enticing for Te Akau Racing with their star sprinter Imperatriz (I Am Invincible), but they have put the nail in the coffin of that idea this week.

Te Akau principal David Ellis has confirmed once more that she will remain in Melbourne at their new Cranbourne base and target three Group One races, starting with Friday’s Moir Stakes (1000m) at The Valley. “It was an interesting decision, but we’d pretty much made up our mind a month or six weeks ago that we’d go for the Group One races,” Ellis told Racing.com. We’ve been offered some positions (in The Everest) by really good judges in Australia, but we’ve decided that we want to keep her in Melbourne to race this spring. We think she’s slightly better left-handed than right-handed and she’s already had a long trip over form New Zealand to Melbourne, so I don’t think she needs another long trip up to Sydney. We love racing in Melbourne, our owners love it so with our base there, it was a pretty easy decision to make in the finish. We have got a lot of owners going over and it will be a fun night.”

Imperatriz impressed with her first-up victory in the Gr.2 McEwen Stakes (1000m) at The Valley earlier this month, adding to her previous heroics when winning the Gr.1 William Reid Stakes (1200m) at the Melbourne track in March.

She had a hit-out at The Valley on Tuesday morning over 800m alongside stablemate Zourion and trainer Mark Walker was pleased with what he saw from the five-year-old.

“It’s just been a balancing act trying to keep her fresh enough to go another 1000m, but Ben’s (Gleeson, assistant trainer) been happy with her the whole way through, and I thought her work was good,” Walker said. “In a perfect world you’d be going 1100 if not 1200m, so we’ll just have to see Friday night if she is fresh enough. She’s actually a Group One winner over a mile at home in New Zealand but I think her pet distance is 1200 if not 1400m. It’s a bit of a juggling act trying to go 1000m again.”

Guest Selector – Gary Williams

Gary made a bit of money for his followers last week with, firstly, Verstappen, whom he tipped when fixed odds were $26/5.50, flying home for 2^nd from an impossible position on the turn, paying $4.30 the place on the tote. Then his Rosehill tip in the Stayers Race, Athabascan, prevailed at $4.50 the win and then to cap things off Encap, at the same venue, ran 2^nd in the Golden Rose at $3.40 the place!!!@