An awkward start coupled with a slight stumble from the 732m traps saw the eight race winning sequence in New Zealand by the classy stayer Ring The Bell finishing in his heat for the $15,825 Kingston Cup at the Addington Raceway on Thursday evening.
Pictured: Opawa Cheviot winning his Kingston Cup heat (pic Dave Robbie)
The Ray Adcock prepared stayer settled a long class from where he gamely tried to pick up his lost territory. He steadily closed in on his rivals, however the task proved too much of a hurdle to overcome when he gamely came up a head and a length short. He will be returning to contest next Thursday’s final at Group 2 level.
It was an action packed race finish, which saw the Dave and Jean Fahey prepared Little Bit Funny lifting over the final bounds to nail her kennelmate Opawa Racer by a head margin. She clocked 44.07s for her 732m assignment.
Ring The Bell finished strongly a length behind, while Waimac from the John McInerney pressed on gallantly to claim the final field position for the decider from this heat another two lengths behind. Know Worth will occupy the second possie on the reserves bench for Gary Cleeve.
It was a stylish staying effort that Opawa Cheviot put in to annex the first heat. After settling just behind the pace and racing there for the majority of the journey he outstayed his rivals to claim his heat victory by 3.25 lengths in 43.74s for his inform trainers Steve and Bonnie Evans.
After racing in the rear group for most of the trip it was Translator for the Faheys who steamed home for the Faheys to claim second. She relegated her kennelmate the freewheeling Runway Bono back to third by two lengths.
1.25 lengths further behind it was race on for fourth which saw Know Jinx surging late to snatch that place of the Bruce Dann trained Velvet Girl for Cleeve. The brave Velvet Girl becomes the first reserve for the decider.
Kingston Cup qualifiers were (from left): Opawa Racer, Runway Bono; Translator
NZRS Graduation heats
Clear cut winning margins was the order of the evening for the three NZRS Graduation 520m heats decided. First up we saw Nozzno Fear for Ashley Bradshaw slipping through his heat in 30.45s. The Steve and Bonnie Evans trained Goldstar Marvely kicked on solidly for second three lengths behind while holding a 1.75 length margin over the strong finishing Opawa Plum from the Dave and Jean Fahey kennels. She shuffled the John McInerney prepared Princely Gold, who will the second reserve for the final, back to fourth by three quarters of a length.
Draxler gave his heat rivals a chasing lesson when he dictated terms to them while scampering away for his 30.38s heat win scoring by a comfortable 7.75 lengths for the Faheys. Team McInerney will be returning for next Thursday’s $8,000 final with Botany Alan after he gamely chased the pacemaker throughout. Finishing resolutely to claim third 1.25 lengths behind was Kay Bomb from the Gary Cleeve kennels. She’ll occupy the first possie on the reserves bench for next Thursday’s final.
It was another chaser from the Evans kennels who returned the quickest heat time when Goldstar Miley cruised through her assignment in in a tidy 30.25s holding a 6.75 length margin over the Cleeve conditioned Hard Questions. Goldstar Pro, who raced handy to the pace throughout, arrived home in third 1.75 lengths further back for the Evans camp.
Addington NZRS Graduation heat winners were (from left): Nozzno Fear with handler Peter Seque; Owner Mark Lin handled Draxler; Co-trainer Bonnie Evans with Goldstar Miley (pics supplied by Dave Robbie - drobbie@ihug.co.nz – 021 607 869 for all your South Island race photos)
By Peter Fenemor
