Nedwin heading for victory on Tuesday.
Champion jumps trainer Paul Nelson admits he is heading into somewhat uncharted territory when two of his superstars race for the second time in just four days at Te Rapa today.
Today’s meeting signals the start of the elite flat racing for the season with the $150,000 Waikato Stud Foxbridge Plate featuring some of our better gallopers, headlined by the likes of Dragon Leap, Pier, Mustang Valley, Darci La Bella and the emerging Skew Wiff.
But the meeting also has two jumping bonuses for punters, with both the Bridge’s Insurance Hurdle (R1) and Pakuranga Hunt Steeplechase (R4) premier jumps races in their own right and the most crucial lead-ups to the Great Northerns in three weeks.
Nelson has the favourite in both jumps races, with Nedwin in the hurdle and The Cossack in the steeplechase, but finds himself in the rare position of backing them up just days after they contested the same flat race at Rotorua.
That race, which Nedwin won and The Cossack finished fifth in, was supposed to be last Sunday but the meeting was delayed until Tuesday because of surface water, which has made for a busy week for the two class acts.
“We took them home after their race on Tuesday, they spent all day in a good paddock on Wednesday, then we cantered them on Thursday then they did some light exercise today [Friday] before we left home,” says Nelson.
“It is not something we have done with these type of horses before and we will find out tomorrow whether we got it right or not.”
Horses racing just days apart used to be commonplace on rural circuits and still happens at some major carnivals - but rarely would they be asked to make the trip from Hastings to Rotorua, return home then travel again from Hastings to Te Rapa all inside four days.
If any horses can handle it should be hardened old warriors like Nedwin and The Cossack but Nelson says while the quick turnaround is a small journey into the unknown, he is more worried by the improving track at Te Rapa.
It was rated a Heavy 8 yesterday but expected to improve to a Slow 7 for today’s meeting and neither Nedwin or The Cossack have tended to be as dominant on better surfaces.
“Nedwin won this race last year but ran unplaced in the Great Northern a few weeks later on a better track but we were having a slight hoof issue with him at that time,” explains Nelson.
“We have Taika, who is a good improving horse, in the same hurdle but he also might be at his best on the heavy so Nedwin is still our better chance.”
Aiding both Nelson and training partner Corrina McDougal’s runners is the fact key rival Happy Star is also at his best on heavy tracks, although the freegoer may be better suited by the 3200m today than the 4200m of the Grand National when second last start.
The Cossack is such a wonderful horse he is still clearly the one to beat in the steeples even though a heavy track would have made his $1.60 more palatable for punters.
Nelson also has impressive last-start winner Raucous in the steeples and says as well as he is going, The Cossack remains the stable’s top tip.
The improving track and the rail being back to the true could be crucial factors in the Foxbridge, in which Dragon Leap is favoured over Pier and Skew Wiff, with Darci La Bella an obvious hope in a race she has been set for.