Champion jockey Opie Bosson thanked an unlikely personal trainer for saving his career after he burst back into the Group 1 winner's circle with Noverre in the 2000 Guineas at Riccarton yesterday.
Bosson, who has barely ridden this season after being trapped at home on the wrong side of theAuckland region Covid boundary, looked like he had never missed a beat with his patient come-from-last win.
An $800,000 yearling purchase by Te Akau's David Ellis, Noverre paid for himself and more in just a few ticks over a minute and a half yesterday, the Guineas about the only race in New Zealand that can guarantee a stallion career.
The aim will now be to earn more black type, with anything resembling that in Australia a game-changer.
It was a consummate training performance by Jamie Richards, as Noverre didn't really know how to use his motor last season, so he required patience and the daring to send him to the South Island early, where stable foreman Sam Bergerson has played a huge role in helping Richards get him to a peak.
But Richards and his off-sider Bergerson weren't the only ones showing off training skills yesterday, as Ellis was credited by Bosson for getting him back into shape.
At 41, Bosson finds returning to the saddle increasingly harder after layoffs and he wouldn't be the only Aucklander in lockdown not feeling his healthiest when he was finally granted exemption to move south of the border.
He stayed in virtual quarantine at Ellis' property but his daily regime didn't just contain plenty of farm work but early morning gym sessions with the boss, himself recovering from a recent leg operation.
"David has been a huge part of getting me here," said Bosson. "He has helped get me in shape and in the right frame of mind and back riding, and never stops believing in me. So to win a race like this, which means so much to Te Akau, is very special."
It was a double celebration for Ellis, as it was also the birthday of his wife, broadcaster and administrator Karyn.
Noverre was the star of the show yesterday but he might not have been the fastest horse at Riccarton, as Cambridge mare Babylon Berlin sizzled down the dogleg 1000m of the Pegasus Stakes to justify her incredibly short quote for trainer Ben Foote.
The 4-year-old mare looks even stronger than last season and she will add some tactical depth to the summer's major sprints.
Southern galloper Mr Intelligence carried the 59kg topweight to an easy victory in the $75,000 Metropolitan, the lead-up to next Saturday's New Zealand Cup.
