It’s been four years since Tony Herlihy tasted Group One success, but the champion reinsman said it was just as he always remembered it when The Orange Agent won Friday night’s Group One New Zealand Breeders Stakes at Addington.
You have to go back to Irish Whisper’s victory in the National Trot on New Year’s Eve of 2013 to find Herlihy’s last victory in a Group One and when The Orange Agent crossed the line well in advance of her rivals he also ticked off another achievement on his long list of success as a driver when he won the premier mares’ event of New Zealand racing for the first time.
The Orange Agent’s win was Herlihy’s 65th Group One success, more than 31 years since Comedy Lad gave him his first when winning the Auckland Cup back in 1986.
“It’s nice to be able to tick another one off, but the credit really needs to go to the horse,” Herlihy said.
“She’s outstanding, and is getting better every time I get behind her I think.
“We got it pretty easy out there for the first bit, but she still felt so big and powerful coming off the back when we really sprinted that I knew she would be hard to run down.”
The Orange Agent is a bit like a harness racing equivalent of Valerie Adams.
Cool, calm and collected but when it’s required the ability is there for a bang moment and she can blow her rivals out off their feet in one swoop.
The Brian Hughes trained mare had issues in getting to Addington and arrived in Christchurch at the 11th hour for the Group One along with fellow Northerner, Better B Amazed.
Not even that hectic schedule could stop her though as she claimed her fourth Group One success.
The daughter of American Ideal has now won 20 of her 29 starts for more than $600,000 for her owners; Trish, John and Maureen Green and also Peter Bult.
Piccadilly Princess, who enjoyed the good trip behind The Orange Agent was unable to peg her back in the straight running a brave second while Better B Amazed emerged from the pack to run third.
*It’s not everyday that the appearance of a horse such as Lazarus can be usurped by others, but on Friday night that was exactly the case.
New Zealand’s highest rated pacer made light work of his fresh up performance when he pulled off the back of stable mate Heaven Rock’s at the top of the straight and waltzed on by for Mark Purdon.
“He needed that hit out, we haven’t been able to do a lot with him,” Purdon said.
“That will strip him a lot better off and he can probably come back here again next Friday and have another run before we head to Auckland.”
A trip to Auckland means no Easter Cup for the New Zealand Trotting Cup winner but an abundance of riches await him in the North Island anyway and a shot at Jewels glory too if the All Stars decide it’s worth have a crack at.
Heaven Rock’s for his roguish tendencies was fantastic in second after blasting the gate and then over-racing for much of the event.
“I thought he was good,” Natalie Rasmussen said.
“It’s a confidence thing with him really, every time he goes out there and does things right is a win for us.
“But he’s going to be competitive, I’ll be putting a stronger bit on him, we just had a light one on him tonight and he tried to fight it a bit.
Captain Dolmio continued his rise up the ranks with an eye-catching effort for third as he works towards the Easter Cup for the Robert Dunn stable.
*Cran Dalgety knows Chevron Express is good enough to take on most of the boys in this weekend’s New Zealand Trotting Derby but the presence of Enghien is enough to make him elect not to be there for the Group One.
Dalgety’s outstanding filly added the New Zealand Trotting Oaks to her resume’ on Friday night with a particuarly dour performance in the hands of Dexter Dunn after looking all but done at the 400 metre mark.
“She just needed a bit of time to balance up,” Dalgety said.
“They were running along that quick that it was always going to be a survival of the fittest and she knows how to find the line.”
Owned by the popular and effervescent Graham Beirne, Chevron Express will now head to Auckland to contest the Sires’ Stakes Series for three-year-old trotters and then the Northern Trotting Oaks.
She will be likely to take on the boys when the Jewels roll around later in the season.
“We know she is good enough, but you don’t want to be doing it all the time.”
Regal Love showed she will be a force wherever she heads to next for the Mark Purdon and Natalie Rasmussen stable with her bold effort for second while Needle, who finished third, was relegated back behind Zoey’s Gift after it was proven that she had struck the latter’s tyre at the top of the straight.
Colin DeFilippi admitted a charge of careless driving and was suspended for three days.
*It’s a case of game on for the New Zealand Derby this week.
Ultimate Machete was outstanding winning Friday’s Flying Stakes, but there was equally as much admiration for the performance of Vincent who finished third.
It sets up a mouth-watering clash for the Derby and barrier draws are going to very much play a factor in the Group One event on Friday night.
“I’m really happy with that run for my guy,” Natalie Rasmussen said of Ultimate Machete.
“It was an absolutely perfect hit out for us heading into next week because we didn’t have to do too much but managed to get a good run into him which will tidy him up really nicely.”
Vincent was left three wide without cover for the last 800 metres of the race, but picked himself up at the top of the straight to surge again, beaten only by Ultimate Machete and Rakapuka Ruler who had enjoyed the run on the markers.
The latter showed his gate speed will make him a factor this week if he can draw the front line as he blasted out from behind the mobile on Friday night to find the right spot before handing up to Ultimate Machete.
*New Zealand records were par for the course on Friday night with four new records being set.
Chevron Express set the ball rolling when she lowered Habibti’s three-year-old 1950 metre record when trotting 2:21.9 - which is incidentally only 0.2 seconds off Monbet’s male record for the same age group.
Franco Nelson then lowered Lazarus’ age group record for a four-year-old and older over 2600 metres when he paced 3:10.7 to win his comeback race.
The Orange Agent then beat Pemberton Shard’s national mark for an older mare over 2600 metre by almost two seconds when she crushed her rivals in the Group One New Zealand Breeders Stakes, pacing the distance in 3:07.4.
Habibti Ivy then smashed Golden Gate’s national record for an older trotting mare over 2600 metres when she claimed the Four and Five-Year Old Trotting Championship.
Matt Markham
