RACING Gus Hot Favourite For Winter Oats

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31112, 15 July 1966, Page 4

RACING Gus Hot Favourite For Winter Oats

(From Our Own Reportsr)

WELLINGTON. The three-year«old, Gus, will be a dominating favourite for the Winter Oats, first leg of the T.A.B. double at Trentham tomorrow.

Giving weight all round would beat most three-year-olds, but does not look beyond the Levin chestnut, the winner by three lengths of the Parliamentary Handicap with 8-1, or 91b less, on Wednesday.

The three horses closest to Gus at the end of the Parliamentary’ Handicap were Treble. Elkayel, and Kumai, and none is engaged in the Winter Oats. Treble and Kumai are in the Winter Hurdles and Elkayel's run for a rather distant third on Wednesday did not give his trainer, A. McGregor, reason to believe he would turn the tables on Gus ■ tomorrow. Laramie and Certain, the I two closest to Gus in the i weights in the Winter Oats, should also be the three-year-olds strongest rivals. Laramie has strong form over middle distances on North Island courses. He was one of the little fancied runners against the milers in the Whyte Handicap, but his seventh could be considered more than satisfactory at a I distance short of his best. Certain ran in the Parliamentary Handicap. but eleventh was the best he could manage. Those who were prepared to accept a gallop last Monday at its face value could not have been surprised at Certain’s failure. The Washdyke three-year-old blew hard after being well beaten by Treble in that trial,

and his Parliamentary Handicap run should have done him good—not enough perhaps to give him an edge on Gus but enough to carry him into one of the places. It will oe surprising if any below Certain in the weights produces a winning gallop. The 10-year-old Count Filou would have been a strong fancy in this field at the height of his powers, but his Parliamentary Handicap eighth did not offer much encouragement FORM RUNNERS Maria Mitchell, winner of the Whyte Handicap last Saturday, and Dunraven, a winner by a wide margin against the sprinters on Wednesday, are two notable form runners in the field for the Anslow Handicap, second leg of the T.A.B. double. Maria Mitchell won the mile Whyte Handicap with 8-1 and her weight of 9-*3 in the Onslow Handicap represents a rise of 81b on a half-stone higher scale. If the ground becomes loose Maria Mitchell could go through the meeting unbeaten. She has sharp early speed, and should be quickly in front. She is also very game, and will set the others a hard chase from the home turn.

Dunraven is another with enough early pace to reach the leading bunch. The field he beat on Wednesday was weaker than this one. Mukupai and Lei, the third and fourth place-getters in the Whyte Handicap, and David Jeff, the Stewards’ Handicap winner, put more strength into the top half of the Handicap. David Jeff produced a first day winning run and recorded a third over seven furlongs on Wednesday. One of the disappointments on Wednesday, after her second in the Whyte Handicap, was Queen’s Poet. She finished fifth, almost in line

with the second horse, but never got near the winner. Win, fourth on Wednesday, might again find seven furlongs too short. The size of this field could be also . against him, although he managed to keep closer to the leaders than usual in his latest race.