Racing: Culminate may turn tables

Culminate will be hard to beat in the Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes tomorrow. Photo / Dean Purcell

Pukekohe has possibly the longest home straight in New Zealand racing.

A year ago today, trainer Stephen McKee found it wasn't quite long enough.

He hopes to rectify that tomorrow with Culminate in the $110,000 NRM Auckland Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes.

Last year, Ruud Van Slaats led them up in the Breeders Stakes and Imananabaa and Culminate tried to run her down.

They couldn't and the margins were a long neck and half a length.

"It's a very long home straight, but generally you still need to be in the first three or four rounding the home turn in a race like this," said McKee yesterday.

Culminate and Ruud Van Slaats are both acceptors again and it's not an impossibility that the same scenario will again develop.

Last year, Culminate went into this race off a four-week break, this time it's six weeks. She chased O'Ceirins Angel home on a heavy track in the Postponed Classic at the Egmont meeting on October 10.

"Yes, it's a little while since she raced. I've had to keep her up to the mark because she tends to freshen quite quickly and she's pretty ready for this race."

Culminate was good enough to finish second, beaten half a length, by outstanding mare Typhoon Tracey in the group one Coolmore Classic in Sydney in the autumn.

Ruud Van Slaats is a gross mare and should be greatly improved by her first-up run at Te Rapa recently.

She missed the start slightly after becoming restless in the gates. With winner Richard Beymer running the 1200m in front in 1.8.93 there was no opportunity to make ground from the back for any of the runners.

Ruud Van Slaats is a high-class mare and a very tough opponent when in form.

Tootsie, trained by Paul Moroney, is the horse Stephen McKee fears most.

Tootsie has just returned from a Melbourne campaign and McKee see that as a plus.

"These horses that race at the top level in Australia and come home to race here soon afterwards almost always race very well in their first start or two."

The last New Zealand start Tootsie had was in the Railway Stakes at Ellerslie on January 1.

Recently in Australia she finished second in a listed 1200m, beaten threequarters of a length then sixth in the Tristarc Stakes behind Typhoon Tracey and Hot Danish.

She was 15th of 16 runners at her last start at Flemington on Melbourne Cup day, but don't be fooled by that. The hot field was headed by Strawberry Fields and the unlucky Ortensia and Tootsie was less than five lengths away in a bunched field.

Veloce Bella is another class act who will be better for her first-up effort. She is always better when she gets to 1600m and beyond, but if they rattle along in front at a good clip here she will be getting over the top of many of them late.