RACING TRENTHAM STAKES TOMORROW

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28801, 23 January 1959, Page 4

RACING TRENTHAM STAKES TOMORROW

Fair Chance May Be Favourite

(From Our Own Reporter)

WELLINGTON, January 22.

The Trentham Stakes, a weight-for-age test on the final day of the Wellington Cup meeting on Saturday, should throw valuable light on the strength of the three-year-olds this season.

The Great Northern Derby winner Lawful will probably be missing from the field but Up and Coming and his stablemate Fountainhead will run. To oppose them are their stablemates Melanion and Ark Royal and Fair Chance.

It is a small but Select field. Ark Royal will be attempting his fourth successive win. This year’s Wellington Cup winner has been successful at weight-for-age and will take beating if it is a staying test. Fair Chance and Melanion were first and second in the Welling* ton Racing Chib Handicap, one mile and a half, on Monday Fair Chance was not at all badly treated with 8-11. At weight-for-age the brilliant Fair’s Fair gelding will have #-S over a furlong less. After winning the Christmas Handicap he was tested at weight-for-age in the Clifford Plate at the Auckland Cup meeting and was a solidly-finishing second to Up and Coming. The distance was one mile and a quarter and Up and Coming won by a length after leading from the start. Fair Chance has shown he can master a distance and he has retained his ability to muster a very sharp sprint, so ..fie mUM . be reckoned with however the L race is run. Melanion met Fair Chance at level weights in the Wellington Racing Club Handicap Miff was soundly beaten by a length and a half. If both horses have held their form Melanion is hardly likely to reverse the positions Ulis time. G. F. Hughes, who rode Melanion in the Racing Chip Handicap, will ride Fountainhead. This very brilliant chestnut was a fairly distant third’ behind Lawful and Up and Coming < in the Gloaming Stakes on Monday He is a hard puller in slow run races and might have trouble in winning over a bit of ground on the big courses. A. late decision will be made about a rider for Up and Coming. Sammer Glow Fit Summer Glow and Resemblance will probably dispute favouritism for the Sammer Handicap, the first leg of the double. Resemblance won this race a year ago with 8-0, and must stand a very good chance again , under that weight. Hp baa not rheumatism, and the trouble did 1 not respond to treatment until re- 1 cently. Resemblance might have won I the Wellington Cup had he been s a little closer to the lead starting < the 'last half-mile. His big run ’ from the back was a feature of the race. i He has thrived in the meantime I and will - be one of the picture s horses of the field. i Summer Glow might be able to i shade Resemblance because of her ability to take up a good position 1 early in the race. 1 Canon and Motueka could repre- I sent the South Island with credit i They were sixth and tenth respec- i tively in the Wellington Racing : Club Handicap, and Canon might ! have been hard to beat with a good run from the home turn. 1 Monday’s race improved 1 Motueka, which looks a picture, i He won the Metropolitan Handi- i cap over a mile and a half at Riccarton in November. : * Final a fast finisher for fourth ’ in the Racing Club Handicap, will <

probably be the best light-weight if she runs as well again. Second Leg Lion will be a dominating favourite for the second leg, the City Handicap but should get I opposition in strength from Shambrock Queen, Cabonne, Pandex, Sonella, and perhaps Fair Merit, a newcomer at the meeting. Comte de Paris, which was not ridden with good judgment in the January Handicap on Monday—he finished brilliantly from the tail of the field for third—is the logical favourite for the Thorndon Handicap. He could be the stumbling block for Gold Medal, which is unbeaten in .twa starts at the meeting. Bella Paola will bring her record to five successive wins if she comes out on top in the