RACING W. Skelton Improved Outstanding Record

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28532, 11 March 1958, Page 4

RACING W. Skelton Improved Outstanding Record

The Dominion’s leading jockey, W. D. Skelton, improved on an outstanding record of riding successes at Trentham on the first day of the Wellington Racing Club’s autumn meeting on Saturday. Savage, winner of the Thompson Handicap, was Skelton’s tenth successful mount since the Wellington Cup meeting in January.

That brought the Oamaru horseman's average on the course to slightly more than one winner in every three mounts in five days’ racing. The accumulated stake money won for owners during the period, as a result of Skelton’s vigorous and calculated horsemanship, amounted to £12,595, and an investment of £1 each way on each of his 28 mounts would have returned a profit of £7l 12s. At the Wellington Cup meeting in January Skelton rode seven winners and gained two minor placings from 16 mounts on the three-day programme. His only success on the first day was on the Oamaru-trained hack. Compensate, in the Pencarrow Handicap, but he also rode Cardinal King into fourth place in the Telegraph Handicap and finished third on Royal Jester in the mile Anniversary Handicap. His unplaced mounts were the two-year-olds, Romancing, in the Wellington Stakes, and Shankill, in the Fitzherbert Handicap. Skelton’s first two mounts on the second day of the fixture were successful. They were Royal Jester, which beat a strong field of milers, in the January Handicap, and Liban, winner of the principal event, the Wellington Racing Club Handicap. His other three mounts. Tarbillon and Bon Salut, in the Ruapehu and Douro Hack Handicaps respectively, and the Nursery Handicap candidate, Matlock, were not placed. Three Successive Wins

Skelton showed exceptional . judgment on the last day of the cup meeting when, on a track which was cutting out, he rode four winners, three in succession w His first and third mounts of the day were the only ones to fail. They were Romancing, in the Hopeful Nursery Handicap, and Liban, which was equal top-weight in the Summer Handicap. His second ride for the day was *on the three-year-old. Rover. * which outstayed 10 opponents to win the weight-for-age Trentham - Stakes. Skelton’s other three * mounts were the Oamaru-trained - gallopers, Compensate and Cardinal King, and Warwick. Compensate completed a double at the meeting by winning the Kelburn Hack Handicap, Cardinal King was successful in the City Handicap and Warwick completed the hat-trick for Skelton by beating a strong field of milers in the Thorndon Handicap. The stake winnings of horses ridden- by Skelton during the * three days amounted to £8370.

Skelton returned to Trentham for the Royal Welcome meeting last month. Although five of his mounts failed to reach places, he still had one winning ride. That was on the three-year-old filly.

Bamboo, which decisively beat 13 other runners of her own sex and age in the Balmoral Handicap.

On Saturday Skelton had six rides. As well as Savage, he was also successful on Cardinal King, in the North Island Challenge Stakes, and he finished fourth on Bamboo in the Railway Handicap. Those which failed to reach a place were Canon, Logie and Moutere. Skelton, w'ho won the jockey’s premiership last season with 66 winning rides, is again in an unassailable position this season. Saturday’s successes brought his total for the present term to 59 wins, 21 ahead of his brother, R. J. Skelton, who is his nearest rival.

Savage Improves Record Success for three-year-olds in the Thompson Handicap at Trentham has proved elusive since Sage King won in 1947. Savage,

last Saturday’s winner, was only the second of that age to succeed " in the testing mile event since T that year. The other was the c Riccarton - trained Desperado. ( which won the for Mr H. D. Greenwood in 1952. The Thompson Handicap is a ( true test for speed and stamina. | ( and Savage, a brown gelding by n Ruthless from Happy Climax. c trained for Sir Thomas Duncan j by E. Temperton at Awapuni, f does rtbt lack either. J Saturday’s success was Savage's J fifth this season and his first in open company. His rise to the top grade has s been swift. He won his way out j of maiden class at Otaki in Sep- a tember and gained two wins from j his first five starts in hack com- 5 pany. They were at Feilding, in < November, and at Woodville, in December. Two starts later he narrowly beat Imitation in the ; Awapuni Stakes, a mile race con- 1 fined to three-year-old colts and 8 geldings; « That race took Savage into open , company and his record in four f starts in the higher grade before last Saturday was a fourth and [ two seconds. He finished fourth g to Summer Glow, Turon and g Poval Jester in the Anniversary t Handicap at Trentham in Januaiy, t and was runner-up to Colchis in j the Rangitikei Cup. He filled a f similar position behind Oracle in ( the Wanganui Gold Cup last month. Savage is not engaged on the second day of the Wellington meeting next Saturday, but should have little difficulty in extending his record before the season ends. Disqualification Of Cambridge 1 (N.Z. °ress Association—Copyright) j MELBOURNE, March 10. Victorian Racing Club stewards , on Saturday disqualified the former ( New Zealand trainer, J. Mitchell, the countrv jockey. A. Seymour, and • the New Zealand horse, Cambridge, 1 for two years. The stewards found Mitchell and Seymour guilty of improper practice in the running of Cambridge in , the Essendon Handicap at Flemington on Wednesday. Cambridge fin- > ished last in a field of seven. The stewards took no action • against the owner, Mr E. F. Ward, ( who is in New Zealand. £24,000 Jackpot Shared (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) SYDNEY, March 10. Fifteen betters each collected £ 1602 9s 6d from the Jackpot totalisator at the Canterbury race meeting on Saturday. The jackpot, held over five races, paid out £24,004 15s 6d. including I £5577 8s 9d carried over from last > week's Warwick Farm meeting. Successful betters included the : iackpot "specialist.” Harry Martin. ' Martin, a business broker, has col--1 lected at eight of the 11 jackpot i meetings held so far. He won £lOOO on Saturday, bringing his figure to about £30,000. T.A.B. Figure £56.549 (New Zealana Press Association) WELLINGTON, March 10. Investments with the Totalisa- . tor Agency Board for the Taranaki Jockey Club’s meeting at New Plymouth today were £56.549 10s, made up of win and place bets of £29,532 10s, and j £27,017 on doubles. The off- | course substitute was Searturn. , N.Z. Horses In Stakes i (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) MELBOURNE, March 10. I Seven New Zealand horses are i among the 25 first acceptors declared today for the £5OOO Alister Clark Stakes at Moonee Valley ; on Saturday. They are, Zariba, Baron Boissier. Ray Ribbon, Lochie, Ma Reine, Conclusive and Sombrero. The Alister Clark Stakes is one of Victoria's richest handicap races outside the big cups. Since IMB it has been run over a mil< |ar£d a quarter.