Another win likely for top mare

Press, 22 October 1980, Page 29

Another win likely for top mare

Special correspondent Auckland Delightful Lady looks certain to be a firm favourite in the Vacation Handicap at Alexandra Park this evening. She faces a formidable assignment from the back mark, however, and it would come as no surprise if she were beaten.

f 200 m to bring her back to - her gait. It was almost cer--1 tainly a temporary lapse, t Stormont put it down to De- ■ lightful Lady being "too : fresh.” The Vacation Handicap and other tight-class races . at the meeting are being regarded as something of a L test for New Zealand Cup ; contenders. There is a surplus of “eligibles” this year and good ‘ form at the A.T.C. meeting ’ is vital for selection in the $lOO,OOO Addington race • As well as the open-class ■i horses in the Vacation 1 Handicap, Crow Bar, Dicta- ' torship, Nandina Leader and ; Jawa Boy are by no means ! forlorn hopes for inclusion • in the field. All needing one ’ win to make the grade, they • have some solid form to their credit this season. 1 Delightful Lady’s chief opposition may come from , Katy’s Command and Nan- • dina Leader, although there • is bound to be good support : for Dictatorship, Crow Bar,

The race is the first leg of the TAB double on the opening night of the Auckland Trotting Club’s meeting. It will be continued on Saturday night and the last night will be held next Wednesday. Run over 2200 m, the Vacation Handicap has drawn the strongest field for a tight-class pacing event at the park this season. Delightful Lady has won her last two races from the 20m mark, one of them over 2200 m, but the field on that occasion was not as strong as she meets tonight and there were only 10 runners in the Vacation Handicap, there are now 13. Since she last raced at Alexandra Park on September 20, she has caused consternation among her countless admirers by breaking very badly at a matinee meeting. At Pukekohe last week, she began in a wild gallop and it took her trainerdriver, M. J. Stormont about

) Jawa Boy, Trio and Greg • Robinson.Tutor, second in three of • his last four races, looks a > ready-made favourite for the second leg, the Tourist > Handicap. In his latest at- : tempts, he was beaten a nose by Remarkable at Alexi andra Park on September 20 > and failed by a head to catch Dingle Dell at Claudelands last Friday. I Dawn Mist, which has ; been racing unluckily, and! Hurricane Shannon also I have splendid chances. , The clash in the Com-

mittee Handicap of the grand trotting mares Special Pride and Thriller Dee, and the backmarker, Scotch Tar, promises to be an added i highlight of an attractive j programme. < Thriller Dee showed by a ; record-breaking run at a matinee at Cambridge i recently, she was in the right shape to give Special I Pride, last season’s Rowe ] Cup winner, stout opposi- ; tion. 1