KEY POINTS:
John Wheeler was concerned when classy juvenile filly Juice had her first start on a right-handed track in the recent Champagne Stakes at Ellerslie.
For obvious reasons he is less concerned about that factor when Juice takes on her own sex in today's $55,000 New Zealand Bloodstock Fillies
Stakes at Avondale.
Juice did enough in the Champagne Stakes to suggest she's one of the smartest fillies around.
She appeared to be a little lost in the early stages and dropped to the back of the small field before running on strongly in the closing stages to be only three-quarters of a length behind stylish winner Sufficient.
From barrier No 6 today she should have horses on her outside to guide her into the bend between the 800m and the home turn.
If she produces the same late sprint she showed at Ellerslie she should be very difficult to contain.
"I'm happy with her, she's done well since Ellerslie," said John Wheeler yesterday.
Mark Walker has a strong hand with Bankside Belle and Kate Rush engaged.
Bankside Belle hasn't raced since the Matamata Breeders Stakes in February. She led on a very difficult wet track that day and it was perhaps no surprise she wilted to finish fourth.
This field is not as strong and she looked very sharp winning at the recent Cambridge barrier trials.
Kate Rush was sent out favourite in a maiden juvenile event at Matamata and after sitting outside the speed she finished second to another local runner in Bellalini, who she faces again today.
He might appear to be racing below his career-best form, but talented High Octane has to be strongly considered in today's $60,000 Storming Home @ Stoney Bridge 1600 at Awapuni.
High Octane finished only sixth to emerging star Ginga Dude at Tauranga two starts back, but was only two lengths away.
Last start he finished seventh in the group one Easter Handicap at Ellerslie, but again he was just 2.7 lengths off Pasta Post.
Those runs were not totally convincing, but they were good enough to say without rivals of that calibre, the Cambridge galloper gets his chance to return to winning form.
He has 57.5kg topweight in an even field for the feature event at the Feilding meeting.
The connections of every runner would have sighed relief yesterday when The Foreman was scratched to run instead at Trentham tomorrow.
Jowka and Del Toro are strong chances.
De Toro is no star, but when he puts it together he's pretty smart.
And he likes the Awapuni track where he has won twice. He was only two lengths off the accomplished southern sprinter-miler Tipulater there last start on a tricky surface.
Jowka has been winning in lower grades, but doing it nicely and he gets a weight concession from the main chances.
