RACING NEWS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21578, 25 February 1932, Page 6

RACING NEWS

By Sentinel. Nominations for the Wellington Club’s autumn meeting are due to-morrow. Overhaul has been showing a big improvement in his schooling over steeplechase country and gives every indication of being prominent at thd finish of his next race. . .. New Zealand horses won sis of the 15 races decided at the Victoria Amateur Turf Club’s meeting. The value of these events was £4375. This is indeed an excellent beginning of the autumn campaign by the invading forces. If plans made are carried out, strong reinforcements will be sent from the South Island within the next week or so. Admiral Drake, Nightmarch, Spoon and Compris are all expected to make the trip, while J, M. Cameron may yet take Hunting Song and Gold Trail. . . With heavy reductions ifi stakes almost general, Ammon Ra has little prospect of catching the principal prize winners of New Zealand and Australia, but he is doing very well. His outstanding success in the Caulfield Futurity Stakes oh Saturday brought his total , to £23,253. He had the good fortune to capture the A.J.C. Derby and the Futurity before the reductions came into effect. The Randwick Derby of 1931 had SOOOsovs added. That of 1932 will have only oOOOsovs added. Similarly the thirty-fifth Futurity had 3500sovs added, while the thirty-sixth, to be run next February, will have only 2100_sovs added. Although he failed to lead in a winner at Riecarton on Saturday, F. D. J?nes was knocking at the door and was given solid grounds for hope in the near future. Twice at Trentham last month Shatter finished strongly at the end of mile races. In the Midsummer Handicap he came again at the end of a mile and aqiiarter to beat Azalia for second place. Topthorn, a Hunting Song gelding, made a promising debut in tbe Lyttelton Plate, in which he was handy to the winner, Silver Scorn, most of the way and gained second place. Execution, a third of the team, showed pace in the Trial .Stakes. Taragona improved on recent efforts m running second to Elude. At the New Zealand Cup meeting in November, horses trained by Jones registered only one win, but were five times second and twice

third. ....... The racing authorities in Australia are very strict in insisting that jockeys shall start from their correct barrier positions. For a breach of the rule on this subject the ex-New Zealander, Ashley Reed, was fined £lO in Melbourne recently. From present indications it seems to be almost certain that Spoon and Compris will be shipped to Sydney next week to ■compete at the Australian Jockey Club® Easter meeting. These two have raced well this season, and they are in capital condition to undertake the Australian

The three-vear-old Chief Light, by Chief Ruler from Illume, is at present enjoying a spell. He has shown a good deal of promise at times in his track work, but his race form has been disappointing. He was started on each day at the Dunedin meeting this month, but did not act at all well, and E. Scoullar has turned him out. Age may do a lot for him, and with this in view the gelding will be left in the paddock for three or four months. E. Scoullar has in work at present, for the Southland owner, Mr W. T. Hazlett, the two-year-old filly Irish Lady, by Grand Knight from imported Sprig of Erin. The youngster has not been hurried, but she has done well lately, and it is intended to start her for the first time in the Motukarara Juvenile . Stakes, at the Banka Peninsula meeting next week. J. B. Pearson is at present _ working a four-year-old mare by Solferino from Blush. She is sturdily built and she may develop into a useful performer. Blush, who was bred in 1918 by the late Mr G. B. Starky, is by Absurd from the Treadmill mare Prudish.' She has been a shy breeder, as she missed for three seasons before she produced the mare now at Riccarton, and missed again in the two succeeding seasons. . , , Gay Crest is being kept going in useful tasks, in view of engagements later in the season. With the Trentham Gold Cup cut out of the programme,_ there is no great inducement to send him north tor, the Wellington Racing Club’s autumn meeting next month, and possibly he will be kept for the Great Autumn Handicap. After that, however, the Awapuni Gold Cup may attract him to the Manawatu ■ Reports from Invercargill state that Paris, Apache, and Taramoa are getting through plenty of strong work, and though they have not been tried out seriously they are well forward in condition. These three brothers, all by bolferino from Direetoire, are being got ready to compete over country, and they should be ready to show good form early in the winter. .