Racing: Derby ride all go without any question

Jason Laking winning last year's NZ Oaks on Belle En Rouge. Photo / Race Images

Asked if he wanted to ride in Saturday’s $1 million New Zealand Derby, jockey Jason Laking forgot to ask a relevant question.

“My partner Louise O’Reilly is also my riding manager and she rang and asked me if I would take an engagement for the Derby instead of riding at Wingatui,” explains the southerner.

“I said ‘yes’ straight away and then she asked me if I wanted to know who the horse was and I told her ‘I honestly don’t care’.

“To ride in the Derby has been a dream of mine and it might have taken 20 years for that dream to come true so I told her to take the booking and please book me a plane ticket.”

An already excited Laking was even more thrilled when told he will be riding third favourite Waitak, for trainers Andrew Scott and Lance O’Sullivan, who have trained the last two NZ Derby winners.

“I couldn’t believe it, to get on a Derby-winning chance almost at the last minute,” says the 40-year-old.

“To have two top trainers like Andrew and Lance ask is a real thrill and I have been watching the horse and just love him.”

The surprise trip to Te Rapa meant getting out of some handy rides

at Wingatui, New Zealand’s other domestic meeting on Saturday, including filly Romancing The Moon who Laking was confident he would win a $65,000 race aboard.

While Laking plies his trade predominantly in the South Island, this is not the first time he has answered an SOS from a big-time Matamata stable for a Group1, joining forces with old mate Jamie Richards to partner Belle En Rouge to win the New Zealand Oaks last March.

Booking plane tickets and

studying form wasn’t the only extra preparation Laking had to start after his Derby booking, he also headed off to Mt Hutt, but not for skiing.

“I live in Ashburton so I use the base of the mount as my walk to lose weight,” explains Laking. “I usually [am] around 60kg during the week and while the Derby weight of 57kg isn’t too bad I didn’t want to take any chances as it was off to the mountain.”

Laking won’t be the only jockey Scott and O’Sullivan have booked for the Derby who will be crossing the sea to get there, with Andrew Adkins over from Sydney to partner Jaffira.

“It is difficult when we don’t have 18 senior jockeys up here for a Derby field but we are happy with our bookings,” says Lance O’Sullivan.

“All three of our horses are in good form but Waitak would be our best chance.”

Having now trained two NZ Derby winners to add to the pair he rode, O’Sullivan says while having three (Waitak, Devildom, Jaffira) in our greatest race is a satisfying achievement for the stable, this year’s Derby is a rarity.

“It is not often you have a NZ Derby where the favourite is a high-class horse and you know he will run the distance, but we have that in Sharp ‘N’ Smart,” admits O’Sullivan.

“He has already run second in a Victoria Derby and beaten the weight-for-age horses in the Herbie Dyke last start so [there are] no doubts over him, whereas often the best horses go into a Derby only proven up to 2100m.

“So for all the good horses in the field, he just might be too good for us all.”

New Zealand Derby

$1 million, 2400m, Te Rapa

Saturday, 4.47pm

1: Sharp ‘N’ Smart (4)

2: Desert Lightning (3)

3: Dynastic (10)

4: Waitak (5)

5: Cruz Missile (15)

6: Devildom (18)

7: Opawa Jack (12)

8: Mark Twain (6)

9: Savoir Faire (12)

10: Texas (2)

11: Rockburn (16)

12: Channel Surfer (7)

13: Warsaw (1)

14: Jaffira (11)

15: Andalus (13)

16: Full Of Sincerity (8)

17: Dimaggio (17)

18: Savabourbon (14)