Mantovani And Re-Echo Dead-Heat For First

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30177, 8 July 1963, Page 4

Mantovani And Re-Echo Dead-Heat For First

(From Our Own Reporter) WELLINGTON, July 7. Not surprisingly, Mantovani was the popular choice with those who supported Sweetnotes in the Whyte Handicap, the first leg of the T.A.B. double at Trentham on Saturday. Mantovani lonk-ed a win favourite. Bargoed. which ties when she challenged about Mask our. Mall Peter, inauiuvaiu luokeu a . fnrinni uni > halt out hut Tamm had the edee on

clear-cut winner of a “musical double” until close to home in the Stewards’ Handicap but had to settle for equal first position with Re-Echo, which came from last in a strung out field. Re-Echo was the win and place favourite in this his first open-class test and he would have won outright with a better run through the field. Mantovani was third choice with win and place betters.

The Sweetnotes—Re-Echo combination returned £4B 13s for £l, and Sweetnotes — Mantovani returned £4l 9s 6d. Sweetnotes had to find exceptional finishing speed to win the Whyte Handicap. This Count Rendered mare from Matamata has lost many winning chances through slow starts, and this seemed another one of them. But she was good enough to come right from the back in the last half-mile and win going away by three-parts of a length. This was her third win this season and her first since April, but she looked anything but a forlorn hope after a third in the York Handicap, won by Bargoed. at the Great Northern meeting last month. Sweetnotes is trained by her part-owner, Mr J. W. Kofoed, at Matamata. She is a five-year-old Count Rendered mare from Sweet Chance, and she must be hard to beat in good middle distance races in her pAsent form. Waikato also supplied the runner-up in Supreme Gold, which beat the Hastings lightweight. Howe Fair, by two lengths. Supreme Gold, a Hiawatha gelding from Huntly, had beaten a smart field of milers at Tauranga at his previous start, but was eighth favourite in an even betting race. Favourite Checked Supreme Gold and McCool, like the winner, drifted early in the Whyte Handicap, and none was well placed coming to the home turn. But they fared much better than the

win favourite. Bargoed. which was checked and lost ground quickly soon after the start. Bargoed then had to go for a run on the outside, and was at least nine wide on the home turn. He made some headway for a time after straightening up, but only plodded the last half-furlong and finished eighth He was separated from the stake earners by Ups and Downs, a long shot from Nelson. Beau Kura, and King's Cove.

Croydon's Gold, which ran close to the lead for a start, was a moderate ninth and was followed In by Gold Splice, Toureg, My Contact, Cabrlere. Ilumquh, Teachers, Shangri-La, Beauzami, Big Mac, Saint Nicholas, and McGregor. Shangri-La appeared to have most of the others in difficul-

WELLINGTON, July 7. Vamoose went at least a mile and a half and jumped at least 10 fences with a badly injured leg in the Wellington Steeplechase on Saturday He was in such a bad way after he was pulled up that he was destroyed. Vamoose's jockey, J. D. Pankhurst, said he noticed something wrong with Vamoose early in the race, but did not think there was anything seriously wrong because the Lo Zingaro gelding was still able to jump correctly if slowly. Vamoose was unable to keep up a decent gallop and lagged far behind. It was

ties when she challenged about a furlong and a half out, but she had been without a trail all through the race, and she had nothing left for the last fur-

long. McCool, third in this race last year, ran fourth, but with a run of equal merit. The big Balloch gelding from Riccarton drifted after an even start and was close to the tail of the field though ahead of the winner at the half-mile. He also became unbalanced when bumped by Bargoed near the five furlongs. Re-Echo Drifts Re-Echo drifted as soon as the field left the stalls in the Stewards’ Handicap and Return Fare and Hiat'a That also gave ground

obvious a round from home that he was distressed. Pankhurst pulled him up near the six furlongs. Vamoose did his early racing from the Wingatui stable of J. W Pankhurst, and won once before he was bought by Messrs W. L. Aynsley and D. H. Robertson, and joined E. A. Winsloe's Gore stable. For this combination he won 13 races and almost £7OOO in stakes. His best win was the Grand National Hurdles last year. He also won the Dunedin Jockey Club’s Birthday Handicap and Otago Steeples, and ran fourth in the New Zealand Cup. won by Foglia d'Oro.

Maakour. Mali Peter, and Tampa had the edge on the others for early speed and Cavalier joined the front bunch going to the half-mile. The Riccerton-trained Waverley also showed sharp speed to contend for the lead coming to the home turn, but none waa making better prog-ess than Mantovan I, which was dosing at a great rate after starting a run from third to last.

Mantovani was in front and clear a few strides after straightening up. All tills Ume Re-Echo was weaving through the field from the tan. Re-Echo's big run carried him to second inside the furlong and brought him level with Mantovani in the last stride

Firenze, which also looked hopelessly out of the race at the half-mile, carried topweight of 9-0 Into third piece four and a half lengths back. He finished two lengths clear

of the Riccarton sprinter Coral Chief, which struck trouble when a gap closed near the home turn.

Mall Peter failed to run it out, and was fifth two lengths clear of Golden Fortune. The others, in finishing order, were That's That. Tampa, Maakour. Khorlnga. Waverley, Return Fare, Copper Joy. and Cavalier.