Racing: Dark Destroyer wins the Tarzino chase

Dark Destroyer gets the better of Spring Tide to win the Tarzino Trophy. Photo / Warren Buckland

A poor dress rehearsal was turned around by Dark Destroyer to start his season with a Group 1 victory, beating some of racing's best at Hastings.

The four-year-old ploughed through the mud best to claim the $300,000 Tarzino Trophy for trainers Andrew Scott and Lance O'Sullivan, perfectly ridden by jockey Lisa Allpress.

Local galloper Spring Tide was enormous in second, while one of the glamour girls in La Crique had little luck in third, getting held up and losing momentum, while she never really looked comfortable on the heavy10 surface.

The surface may have also been behind hot favourite Imperatriz running out of the placings, as she faded late to fourth and looked to be struggling in the last 100m, stopping quickly.

She had endured a hard run wide but still loomed up to look the winner at the 300m. But she hit the wall like a horse who couldn't get her legs out of the mud in the closing stages.

Dark Destroyer was backed in from $21 to $10 with the TAB mainly because of his heavy track form, winning the Rough Habit Plate in Queensland in the winter. But he hardly suggested a fresh-up Group 1 win was in the offing when only moderate in a recent Taupō trial.

"That trial really woke him up," said Scott.

"It wasn't that impressive but he was a different horse today and there should be more improvement in him because his coat hasn't turned yet."

That raises the possibility Dark Destroyer gets his crack at the Hawke's Bay Triple crown.

The second leg is over potentially a more suitable 1600m back at Hastings in three weeks and the son of Proisir is already proven at 2000m so the last leg over 2040m is within his range.

With his ability to run on both wet and dry tracks and at least some uncertainty over how long Imperatriz and La Crique remain in New Zealand this spring, Dark Destroyer could be a Triple Crown contender if he isn't shipped off to Australia earlier.

Local trainer John Bary went one better than Spring Tide's second in the earlier Gold Trail Stakes as his filly Best Seller stormed home to give Highview Stud stallion Wrote his first stakes winner.

With the fillies ranks looking open as last season's two Group 1 winners Maven Belle and Lickety Split are out of the domestic spring racing, Best Seller is now the $3.50 favourite for the ultimate prize, the 1000 Guineas at Riccarton.

Also firming for one of the Riccarton classics in November was Dynastic after a comeback win in the Sir Colin Meads Trophy.

Like Dark Destroyer, Dynastic had been only average in his recent trials, raising concerns about how he would handle the very heavy track, but he won going away at the line.

The Karaka Million winner looks certain to be even more potent on better tracks, so will take enormous beating in both the Hawke's Bay Guineas and the 2000 Guineas, for which he is now rated a $4 hope.

Further north and on a much better surface at Ruakaka, another talented three-year-old in Sharp 'N' Smart also returned with a win and looks overs in the Guineas market as the TAB didn't move him from his $16 quote, with maybe some doubts over whether he stays here or heads to Australia for the rest of the spring.