5 WIN SATURDAY: Towering Above The Opposition

Ridden cold, Towering Vision (4 g Circus Maximus – Qiji Vision, by Iffraaj) bounced back with victory in the $55,000 Trackside.co.nz Rating 75 1600 metres on Saturday at Ellerslie.

After resuming with a solid effort for third in August at Taupo, Towering Vision left trainers Mark Walker & Sam Bergerson slightly dumfounded after yielding ground over the concluding stages to finish sixth in the Rating 75 1600 metres on 5 September at Ellerslie, but the stakes winning two-year-old, course/distance winner and stakes placed, gained redemption in the best possible manner.

Ridden by Michael McNab, who scored in the previous race aboard stable-mate System Of Play (Ole Kirk), Towering Vision was allowed to find his feet second last on a genuine pace, 10 lengths 600m, but picked up the bridle turning for home and drove through one off the rail with a big finish.

“You can never be too comfortable being that far back, but that’s how Sam (Bergerson) wanted him ridden today and I think it suited him,” McNab said. “It suited him to switch off and breathe and he showed a good turn of foot off that. 

“Going through them was the shortest way home and I thought he was going well enough to take the runs, so that was my thought process at the time. 

“I was rapt with his first-up run, disappointed second-up, but he’s bounced off that and won.”

On Soft5 footing, Towering Vision ran 1600 metres in 1:36.8, last 600m in 35.2, and drifted in betting to pay $5.50 & $1.60 on the NZ TAB tote. 

“We were a little bit disappointed last time, but he had really come on from the run and the two-week turnaround didn’t seem to worry him,” said Sam Bergerson, training partner with Mark Walker. 

“His work had been good leading in and we were quietly confident after being left scratching our heads last time. 

“He was able to get into a nice rhythm, albeit I thought he had a lot of work to do approaching the home turn, but Michael is riding fantastically well and he was very patient on him. He seems to be getting the best out of them and it was a great effort.”

Walker added: “Talking it over with Sam this morning, we just decided to ride him more patiently and it’s paid off. 

“The plan was to get him more relaxed and breathing easily early in the run. Michael saved some ground and once the gap opened up, he really charged through and was strong through the line. 

“It’s exciting going forward, because we think his best distance is around 2000 metres. He’s a bit stronger and mature now, so he should be in for a good season after winning so well today. 

“The team has all worked very hard through the winter and the results are starting to come, especially when we get better tracks to race on and Ellerslie is deserving of its place as the best track in New Zealand.”

Owned by Te Akau Look Smart Racing Partnership (Mgr: Lady Karyn Ellis MNZM), Towering Vision was purchased by Sir David Ellis for $105,000 at the 2024 Karaka Book 1 Sale, from the draft of Windsor Park, and is now the winner of three races and has placed five times from 13 starts. 

“We set him on a Derby path last season as a three-year-old, after he was runner-up in the Waikato Guineas, and while it didn’t quite fall into place, he has shown today that he was worthy of the task and now registered another really good win,” Ellis said.

“He’s always had the talent, won a two-year-old stakes race over 1400 metres at Te Rapa, and looks like he’ll be competitive in some nice races over a mile and a bit more.

“He’s a nice type and a lovely horse for the owners to have shares in.”

By the greatest sire of stakes' winners in the world, Galileo (Sadler’s Wells), Circus Maximus was a Champion Miler and triple Group One winner that won the St James Palace Stakes (1600m), a noted stallion-making race, and like Champion racehorse Frankel (Galileo) before him, won the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes (1600m) also at Royal Ascot.

His dam Qiji Vision is a sister to multiple stakes' winner Who Dares Wins (Iffraaj), from the family of Joint Top Filly Talk Talk (Lord Ballina) and impressive winning race mare Rumour Has It Now (Traditionally).

Towering Vision has a lovely balance of quality sire crosses in his pedigree, with Northern Dancer on the sire line of Circus Maximus and the dam line of Iffraaj, along with Mr Prospector, and super mare Special. 

Towering Vision was strapped by Megan Fenwick. 

Photo credit - Kenton Wright - www.raceimages.co.nz