Whitole impressive

Press, 27 December 1985, Page 20

Whitole impressive

The Awapuni jockey, Noel Harris, has a good second string Wellington Cup mount judging by the effort of Whitole to win the $40,000 Evening Standard Manawatu Cup at the Manawatu Racing Club’s meeting at Awapuni yesterday.

The trainer, Davey Jones, immediately offered the Wellington Cup ride to Harris but the jockey will have to see what progress Kiwi makes in the meantime. Kiwi is not a certain starter at this stage. . Whitole was winning his second major cup this year when he grabbed victory in the last stride off Milldewe yesterday. His previous big win had been in the Hawke’s Bay Cup in April. After that race he had been aimed at the ?1 million Melbourne Cup but the fact that he'was not qualified for the Flemington feature eventually swayed his connections to stay at home.

Apart from a last start failure in the Avondale Cup, Whitole’s form leading up to the Manawatu race was first class. He had won on his home track at Hastings on November 9 and then ran second in the Waikato

Times Cup before being relegated to third. Yesterday’s success was his ninth from 39 starts and boosted his stakes to $85,185 for owners, Graeme Hansen and Digby Hylton-Smith.

Jones said the horse would now start in the Trentham Stakes on the first day, at Wellington on January 18 in his final leadup to the Wellington Cup. Harris had Whitole near the rear in the early stages of yesterday’s race but had improved down the back •straight to be fifth or sixth with 800 m to run. - “I was a bit worried at the 600 as a couple of horses improved around him he dropped the bit and started to drift,” Harris said. “But he really responded that last bit.”

The lightweight, Milldewe, looked to have the field “shot to pieces” when he looped the field on the turn and went to a clear lead. But he started to tie up in the last 100 m and Whitole responded magnificently to gain a half-head decision.

The part-trainer, Fred Meynell, is unsure where Milldewe will race next but is aiming the mare at the Wellington Cup.

There was only a half neck back to Chance For Gold, which did well considering he was not happy in the ground.

A length and a quarter back, fourth, was Tmaprince, which was having his first start since running in the Melbourne Cup.