It is an intriguing field of girls who will contest Sunday’s $5,000 Winsome Ashley Series Final over 527m at the Manukau Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Pictured: The current Manukau 527m track record holder Winsome Ashley will be intrigued by the field who lines up in Sunday’s feature named after her
Winsome Ashley lowered the Manukau 527m track record twice when contesting the 2008 edition of the Auckland Cup. The outstanding bitch clocked 29.81s when cruising to her heat win. Seven days later she came out to deliver a searing 29.77s gallop when winning the Group 1 final. That time still stands as the best posted for the 527m trip at the Auckland headquarters.
Cristiane Cyborg is an exciting chasing prospect from the Haley Mullane kennels. Yes she is giving away a slice of class to some of her rivals being a C2 graded chaser. She did so in her last outing when she contested the Angus Wright Memorial Interisland Invitation at Group 2 level. It was a massive effort by her by to finish fourth in the hot field after she was firstly slow to leave the 457m, then she stumbled a tad on the mat.
Drawing the ace trap here may possibly present her with an issue or two if she misses the jump again. She jumped from there when she contested her $8,000 NZRS Graduation final assignment at this venue two races ago. She then displayed great track sense when easing herself away from the rail which then translated into an eight length thumping of her rivals which was completed in a tidy meet best 30.56s 527m time.
It is the Denis Schofield prepared Zipping Kirby who holds the class edge over her opponents in this feature. She has made a bright start to her career in this country as seen, until Thursday at Cambridge, by her three stylish wins from as many races. That has taken her from her initial C2 grading up to her current C4 assessment.
She was the victim of shocking racing luck on Thursday in a strong C4/5 457m field where she was forcibly shunted onto the rail, losing all claims. She won her 527m Manukau track debut outing in 30.76s, on the same afternoon that Cristiane Cyborg produced her feature race win. This girl must break quickly from the five trap on Sunday.
Her kennelmate Beltom is also a pretty handy type. One only has to look back to last April when she was installed as the early NZ Oaks favourite to confirm that fact. She does own early pace, which is an asset she must use when jumping from the six trap here. She will certainly make things interesting if she can secure the early race lead here.
Bloomingdales is another contender in this event who also owns sharp early pace. She is poised to use that asset to her advantage from trap three for her trainer Ben Craik. She has dropped back down the grades and yes there is a query about her after she didn’t run out her last 527m assignment as strongly as she has been known to. She does command respect here.
Winsome Ashley Series Final contenders includes (from left): Cristiane Cyborg; Zipping Kriby; Bloomingdales
The Phil Green prepared Good Job is more than capable of delivering a competitive effort in this event. Being allocated the two trap to exit from here has enhanced her stakes earning claim here. This recent downgraded chaser (now C3) has compiled a respectable record from the inside traps.
Carolyn Henley will parade her charge Princess Alea to the traps wearing the blue racing vest. She has featured in lower graded 527m races around here, however she is facing a tougher task being C2 graded which was the class she contested over 527m last Sunday which saw her having traffic issues after she was clipped from behind when racing into the first turn.
Cambridge trainer Peter Fergusson completes the drawn field with his two runners who own contrasting racing styles. They will jump from the outside two traps. Electric Lotto, who is a litter sister to Princess Alea, is also a C2 chaser. She isn’t known for any early pace at all, in fact it’s quite the opposite for her as she is noted for her strong finish. Her fourth placing in June’s Duke of Edinburgh Silver Collar over the extreme 779m distance says that she’ll be warming into her work over the concluding stages here.
On the other paw, the scenario for her kennelmate Alzheimer’s is the complete opposite. She must set the pace from trap rise. If she does the race, combos are likely to receive a significant boost (even though she’s only a C1 graded chaser) as she has proven tough to catch when allowed to set her owns rules in front. She won’t feature if she doesn’t lead out, as she doesn’t enjoy being crowded.
Winsome Ashley Series Final contenders includes (from left): Good Job; Princess Alea; Electric Lotto
Pawnote: Don’t forget about the $10,000 TAB guarantee into the late Quaddie (race 10) at this meeting. The Ben Craik trained sharp sprinter Just One Smile (race 12) looms as the Quaddie anchor.
By Peter Fenemor
