Racing: Pennyweka finds ideal stepping stone at Awapuni

Pennyweka returns to action in Awapuni tomorrow.

Pennyweka may not be able to win a race she wasn’t supposed to be in at Awapuni tomorrow but don’t be surprised if she finishes a lot closer than the market expects.

The dual Oaks winner and recently-crowned NZ Stayer of the Year was not originally expected to start in tomorrow’s $100,000 open mile, with trainer Jim Wallace planning to send her straight to Sydney for the Hill Stakes on October 7.

But Wallace has decided the jump from her seasonal debut over 1400m in the Tarzino Trophy on September9 to the 1900m of the Hill Stakes in two weeks was too much so tomorrow’s 1600m sits perfectly as a stepping stone.

“After thinking about it, this race works out well,” says Wallace.

“It is the right distance range to bring her on and get her ready for the 1900m next start but she comes in well enough weighted and in the right sort of field it shouldn’t be too hard for her.”

Tomorrow’s race brings together some talented gallopers but is a huge drop in class for Pennyweka after the hot field in the Tarzino and she comes in well at the weights for a two-time Group 1 winner, mainly because Justaskme has compressed the weights of those below him.

She is also not the only star stayer in the race who will find the 1600m short of her best, with Auckland Cup winner Platinum Invador and even favourite Ladies Man horses who will be better suited at 2000m-plus.

“I am not going there saying she will win because there are better milers there than her,” says Wallace.

“But the Tarzino has really brought her on and I think she will finish a lot closer than she did there. In this field, at these weights, she could even sneak a place or close to it.”

Pennyweka will have a new rider tomorrow with Sam Weatherley taking the reins before the four-year-old heads to Sydney where she will have an Australian jockey.

With such an even field but boasting horses with different strengths — milers versus stayers, wet trackers versus summer horses — the Mile may come down to more than just class.

Awapuni was rated a soft5 yesterday and if it continues to dry horses such as Justaskme and even second favourite Cork may find themselves run off their hooves while the inside running would become far more beneficial on a good Manawatū surface.

That could be a huge factor with some many of the favourites drawn poorly, so a chance to get back, and many of the staying horses not having the tactical speed to get handy.

It has the potential for a upset.

Awapuni’s other open race over the 1200m also has warning signs for punters as the well-backed favourite is Darci La Bella who was given 62kg and even with apprentice Toni Davies claiming 4kg is giving weight to almost all her rivals from a wide draw.