Racing: Walker breathes sigh of relief

The Auckland Racing Club could not have manufactured better publicity for Saturday's $150,000 Easter Handicap than the controversy around Arlingtonboulevard from last weekend.

Until late morning yesterday, Arlingtonboulevard and Viennetta were due to clash in the group one $150,000 Speights Easter Handicap at Ellerslie.

The Viennetta camp had problems engaging a jockey after Saturday's rider Darryl Bradley copped a three-week suspension for his win that lost in the judicial room.

Viennetta did not accept mid-morning yesterday.

Arlingtonboulevard's trainer Mark Walker was relieved, but he was not conceding that the development was crucial.

Walker believes there would have been little between the pair but for a check his horse copped mid-race.

"Jason [Waddell] said the check he received at the 800m was severe. He thought that without that the result may have been very interesting."

Walker believes Boulevardofdreams will be better than last week.

"This was always going to be her peak effort and it will be. She may also run in the Travis Stakes at Te Rapa, but she'll never be as well as she is for this race."

This will be a big ask for Arlingtonboulevard because Walker has never previously asked the mare to back up within seven days.

"But mainly that has to do with her being a bit jarry in the legs.

"Last week there was a lovely cushion in the grass and she's come through that race perfectly. The surface will be at least as good again this time - a 2.8 to 3.0 track is exactly the right footing for her."

After being rated as 4.1 and slow earlier in the week, the Ellerslie surface was yesterday back to 3.8.

ARC racing manager Butch Castles believes that in the absence of showers the surface will come back to being a very good dead.

"Everything depends on the weather, but how would you know what it's going to do. Earlier in the week it was supposed to be dry for the second half the week, now the forecast is for a few showers tomorrow then fine after that.

"We had the same problem through Cup week - rain was predicted every day and it didn't happen outside of one day."

Arlingtonboulevard likes to run into her races strongly from the home turn and the 1600m at Ellerslie virtually demands that type of effort.

Easter Handicaps are invariably even fields and notoriously difficult to win. You cannot imagine a winner that has not run the last 200m very powerfully.

The McKee stable has a couple of powerful emerging topliners in Korau Road and Sarajay, to be ridden respectively by Lisa Cropp and Lisa Allpress.

Korau Road has an excellent record at 1600m and can race at his best on any type of surface.

"For that reason I suppose I have to lean his way," says co-trainer Trevor McKee.

Sarajay was stylish in finishing hard at Manawatu last start and is hitting top for at the right time for this type of race.

"She can always finish off well, but the biggest thing with her is that she needs decent ground to give her best."

"She wouldn't handle it any worse than dead."