Wanganui Horse of the Year Marea Alta could well run in her last race before heading to the matron's paddock if she takes her place in the $40,000 Remuera Fisheries Mitchelson Cup at Ellerslie on Saturday.
The Montjeu 7-year-old mare was named Wanganui Horse of the Year for the 2011/12 season just two weeks ago after she won Foxton and Kiwifruit Cups and placed in the City of Auckland Cup and Taumarunui Gold, a race she had won the season before.
Trained in Wanganui by Alexander Fieldes and part-owned by Awapuni trainer Mark Oulaghan, Marea Alta has a liking for rain-affected footing and will only take her place on Saturday if the track remains a dead 5 or worse.
"I was happy enough for her to go to stud after she won the Taumarunui Cup [July 30, 2011], so her wins since have been a real bonus," Fieldes said yesterday. "I will line her up on Saturday only if the Ellerslie track remains a dead 5 or worse. If it comes back to a dead 3 she will be scratched."
Fieldes has always been of the belief that horses by Montjeu need to be raced fresh, so he is going outside his own parameters by lining Marea Alta up just three weeks after she won an open stayers event at Ellerslie three weeks ago.