Karen Zimmerman had just the one runner entered at Te Awamutu yesterday and he made the trip up from Otaki worthwhile.
The Zimmerman-trained Harbour Magic completed an impressive hat-trick of wins when scoring a hard-fought, half-length victory over Shanamann in the feature on the card, the $25,000 Te Awamutu Cup.
Harbour Magic waged a stride-for-stride battle down the home stretch with Shanamann and they were 4 3/4 lengths clear of the third-placed Grani.
"This horse has really matured this campaign and has learned to settle and relax when racing in the field," said Zimmerman.
"He used to over-race quite badly earlier in his career but seems to have overcome that problem.
"He's a very handy horse to have in the stable and we'll now press on with him and head to Riccarton for the Winter Cup next month.
"He's done a very good job this season and I'll give him a well-deserved break after racing in the Winter Cup.
"He's racing well over 1600 metres and the Winter Cup is an ideal race for him as it's run over the same distance.
"Although his form on heavy track conditions is very good [three wins and two placings from five starts] he can handle any type of track you race him on."
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Tuscany Dancer showed herself a 3-year-old filly with a promising future, following her powerful home stretch sprint to win.
The Tuscany Flyer-sired filly was patiently handled by apprentice Daniel Hain.
Once the young horseman balanced the filly in the home stretch and asked her to sprint, the response was impressive to watch.
Tuscany Dancer lengthened stride stylishly down the outer of the track to reel in the pace-setting Lord Spectrum to win by three-quarters of a length with the same margin back to Sun Hawke (third).
Trained locally by Tania Skinner, Tuscany Dancer has been racing impressively recently - two wins, both on-course at Te Awamutu, and a third placing - from her last three starts.
Hain, who has a three kilogram apprentice claim, has ridden the 3-year-old in both of her victories and clearly handled the jump up in class to open handicap company.
* * *
Graham Richardson is not a serious punter of his stable runners but he could not believe the 9-1 odds that Chaleur paid when winning the Te Awamutu juvenile event, the second on the card.
The athletic Stravinsky-sired filly posted an effortless debut victory in the hands of Laura Woods.
Woods had the 2-year-old in front throughout to score by three-quarters of a length over Dawdy and Flight Fighter.
"She's a very nice filly but obviously the punters didn't rate her because they let her pay $9.60 a win and I thought she was a $3 or $4 shot," said Richardson.
"I'm not a punter myself but those were crazy odds as her trial form leading into this race was pretty smart.
"I'd given her three trials and in the first trial she ran second here at Te Awamutu but she did everything wrong in her next trial which was at Cambridge on a left-handed track.
"We put the blinkers on her for her last trial back here at Te Awamutu and she won impressively.
"She raced in the blinkers again today but I do think with a bit more racing experience that we can take the blinkers off her.
"She will now have a two-week break out in the paddock and Mark [Donoghue, co-trainer] and Bob Emery [breeder-owner] and I will sit down and plan her 3-year-old racing schedule.
"I do like her as she's quite an athletic filly with a good turn of speed and she won very easily in her debut."
* * *
Elianto returned to winning form stylishly in the hands of leading jockey Lisa Cropp.
The pair combined to record a clear cut victory in the $14,000 John F Grylls Memorial Classic effortlessly charging to the lead wide out in the home stretch to win by 2 1/2 lengths over Quest For Kash and Kiwi King (third).
The 5-year-old Desert Sun mare looked to be in for a rewarding campaign when scoring an impressive fresh-up victory but had battled in her three subsequent starts.
Elianto showed a swift turn of foot in the heavy track conditions to record an easy victory against a useful field of progressive class gallopers.
Takanini-based trainers Trevor and Stephen McKee have been patient with the mare, who has a record of four wins and 11 minor placings from 38 starts.
- HERALD ON SUNDAY
Racing: Otaki raider spins Magic to complete hat-trick
Karen Zimmerman had just the one runner entered at Te Awamutu yesterday and he made the trip up from Otaki worthwhile.
The Zimmerman-trained Harbour Magic completed an impressive hat-trick of wins when scoring a hard-fought, half-length victory over Shanamann in the feature on the card, the $25,000 Te Awamutu Cup.
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