Exciting young star captures Guineas

Press, 18 October 1976, Page 20

Exciting young star captures Guineas

By

J. J. BOYLE,

racing editor.

A crowd of about 11,000 saw an exciting young athlete in action at Trentham on Saturday when they saw Vice Regal capture the Wellington Guineas in style. When Vice Regal learns to run with control of his formidable turn of speed he will become a performer of towering achievement, a worthy successor to Balmerino. Vice Regal is now winner of the Great NorthernWellington Guineas double, a feat which eluded Balmerino last year. Next for him is the New Zealand Two Thousand Guineas at Riccarton on November 6, and there does not appear to be a contemporary in sight capable of beating him at 1600 metres. After that it will be time to consider whether Messrs E. W. Cameron’s and J. W. Campin’s colt will stay the Derby distance.

Vice Regal runs his races much in the style of Davey Jones and Triton, two other

milers of formidable powers from the same family, which was established in New Zealand by Mr J. G. Alexander’s imported Celebrity. His sire Bismark II (son of Relic) did not win beyond seven furlongs, but belongs to a family that has come up with some notable distance runners, Mr Bunker Hunt’s great mare Dahlia being specially notable. Out of Kind Regards, a Great Northern Oaks winner sired by the great L Filou and a descendant of the great Cinna, Vice Regal is one of the most exciting of New Zealand-bred stallion prospects, and his Cambridge breeder will have the gratitude of everyone if he turns down all offers—they have alreadv been numerous—and earmarks the colt for stallion duties at his Chequers Stud in the Waikato.

Vice Regal’s regular rider Gary Edge was under suspension on Saturday, and his lucky substitute 'was Garry Phillips, who had not had a winning mount in the classic before.

Sensibly Phillips did not attempt to fight Vice Regal when he began to pull in a fairly casual opening sector of the race.

Phillips made his act of confidence in the class of the colt by taking him to the front going to the 800 metres. That, as it turned out, was the final act of the race As a race it might have been lacking in drama but there was enough to engage the attention of those with a fondness for a speedster possibly on the threshold of greatness. The South Island-bred Mayo Mellay was the favourite, and the robust bay looked ready for anything beforehand, but he would have had to have been several lengths closer to the pace at half way to have a ghost of a chance of making a run at the winner.

Mayo Mellay was hampered slightly by the off-line Mr Million in the straight, but by that time Vice Regal was storming home nicely clear, and the first prize of $9750 as good as won.