Juventas Has Good Form For Riccarton

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29178, 12 April 1960, Page 4

Juventas Has Good Form For Riccarton

Juventas won the main race at Waverley and Great Autumn Handicap at Riccarton, raced well in widely separated places on Saturday. Juventas won the main race at Weverley and Valaris was second against the milers at the Beaumont meeting.

Juventas is owned by Mr J. G. Alexander, who has been a generous supporter of C. J. C. meetings with members of a largish team he keeps in training at Wanganui with J. C. Bagby.

Juventas won the Canterbury Cup a year before last and was third in that race last November. She was also campaigned at Riccarton at the Grand National meeting, and was only inches from the winner Switzerland in the Winter Cup. She was generally considered to be unlucky, losing ground behind a tiring runner on the home turn. The Stratford Cup was Juventas’s only earlier win this season, but one of a number of very creditable placings was her third to Ma Cherie and Great Sensation in the Autumn Handicap at Trentham last month. The Riccarton jockey. A. J. Stokes will ride Juventas on Saturday. Valaris was easily beaten by Melodic at Beaumont, but he was racing short of his favourite distance, and was in bother at different times during the race. He was carried off the course at one stage, and was never on or close to the iniide, so there was merit in his placing. Now at Oamaru Valaris was having his first race from the Oamaru stable of J. C. Hobbs. He has 7-4 in the Great Autumn Handicap, and anything like one of his best runs would give him a good lightweight’s chance. When he was brought north for the New Zealand Cup meeting Valaris was successful under high-weight conditions. He beat a weak field of open

handicap horses over 11 furlongs at Invercargill soon after the New Zealand Cup meeting and since then he has added three seconds, one third and two fourths to his record. He was runner-up to Liban in the Dunedin Cup, and filled the same place behind Great Sensation in the Invercargill Gold Cup. He was soundly beaten each time, but met two very good gallopers at peak form. Hopes for an Otago victory in the Great Easter Handicap mounted when Royal Chant won at Beaumont on Saturday. 71b Drop Royal Chant carried 8-10 over six furlongs and drops to 8-3 in the Great Easter, though he has another furlong to master at Riccarton. But Royal Chant has winning form up to a middle distance. His performance on , Saturday was marked by his powerful finish, which helped him to peg back Ben Ledi after giving that runner three lengths’ start going to the last furlong. Riding engagement for some of the leading contenders for the Great Easter and Great Autumn Handicaps have been announced. W. D. Skelton will ride Great Sensation in the Great Autumn, and Cardinal King in the Great Easter. Compensate, Skelton’s mount at Trentham last month, will be ridden in the Great Easter by the Riccarton jockey, C. McDonald. W. D. Skelton’s other rides include the Trentham pair Princess Donna and Gay Duchess, which were both placed at Trentham last month. Princess Donna and Gay Duchess are owned and trained by Mr P. Louis, who won a small fortune off his filly Donna Bella at Riccarton last November,