Eighth Group 1 Awaits Avantage

Date: 26 Feb 2021

Eighth Group 1 Awaits Avantage

 

www.raceform.co.nz - Richard Edmunds reports:

 â€œWe'd certainly like to get her back across the Tasman at some stage, but we'll just see what happens on home soil over the next couple of weeks first.”

 

Avantage is aiming for her eighth Group One win on Saturday at Otaki.

With a quality team at home and Avantage heading south in search of an eighth Group One, runaway premiership leader Jamie Richards' golden season is showing no sign of slowing down this weekend.

The champion Te Akau Racing trainer will be out in force for Matamata's biggest meeting of the year on Saturday, including last-start Karaka Million 2YO winner On The Bubbles, while Avantage returns to Otaki to defend her WFA Classic crown.

A scintillating performance in the BCD Group Sprint at Te Rapa earlier this month earned Avantage her seventh Group One victory. With all of those triumphs coming on home soil, she is now third-equal on the list of the most Group One wins in New Zealand. She shares that position with Seachange and Kawi, with only Mufhasa (eight) and Melody Belle (12) ahead of her.

Saturday's El Cheapo Cars-sponsored feature gives Avantage the opportunity to take another step up the ladder and draw level with Mufhasa. That would give Richards, who also trains two-time Horse of the Year Melody Belle, two of the top three names on the all-time list.

Probabeel completes a terrific triumvirate of mares for the stable. While she has yet to win a Group One in New Zealand, she has collected three in Australia over the last 12 months - the Surround Stakes and Epsom Handicap in Sydney, along with last weekend's Futurity Stakes in Melbourne.

“It's incredible,” Richards told RaceForm this week. “We're just so lucky to have all of these high-quality mares around us, and it's quite surreal that they're all here at the same time.

“They've all done such special things for us, and they've earned us the very best kind of press. We've been very fortunate to have them.”

In the overall list of Group One victories by New Zealand-trained horses anywhere in the world, Melody Belle and Sunline share the top spot with 13 apiece. Avantage currently sits in seventh alongside Mr Tiz, Seachange and Kawi, and victory on Saturday would move her into sixth.

Avantage secured another slice of history this year with an unprecedented Group One sprint clean sweep of the Railway at Ellerslie, Telegraph at Trentham and BCD Group Sprint at Te Rapa. A ‘triple crown' bonus of $100,000 was offered for those three races last season, but they had three different winners.

Bought for $210,000 by David Ellis at Karaka in 2017, Avantage is now the winner of 14 of her 24 starts, and victory on Saturday would take her through the $2 million prize-money barrier.

Richards reported that the daughter of Fastnet Rock has made pleasing progress since her Te Rapa heroics on February 13.

“We've been very happy with her,” he said. “She's gone the right way since Te Rapa. She did a good bit of work this (Tuesday) morning, and she's heading into the race this weekend in great order. Opie (Bosson) will head down there and continue his association with her on Saturday.”

One of the few things missing from Avantage's CV is a Group One in Australia. She won the Gr. 3 Birthday Card Stakes in Sydney as a three-year-old, then placed behind the subsequent Everest hero Classique Legend in the A$1 million Gr. 2 Arrowfield 3YO Sprint.

“We'd certainly like to get her back across the Tasman at some stage, but we'll just see what happens on home soil over the next couple of weeks first,” Richards said.

 

 

 

 

 

Meanwhile at Matamata, Richards will shoot for a fifth win in the last six runnings of the Gr. 3 Waikato Stud Slipper. He won it with Heroic Valour in 2016, and then the last three in a row with Sword Of Osman, Yourdeel and Need I Say More.

His three-pronged attack on this year's race is headed by Karaka Million winner On The Bubbles, who is unbeaten in three impressive starts.

Richards will also saddle the Listed Welcome Stakes winner and Karaka Million third placegetter Avonallo, along with Sword Of State, a smart winner at Te Rapa on December 12 and at Matamata on February 10. In between times, he finished third in the Gr. 2 Eclipse Stakes at Ellerslie.

On The Bubbles galloped with Sword Of State on the course proper at Matamata on Tuesday morning, working smartly over 1000 metres in 1:01.8 with the last 600 metres in 35.5.

“We've been really pleased with On The Bubbles,” Richards said. “He had an exhibition gallop at Te Aroha last week and went very well there, and he followed that with a nice piece of work on the course proper at Matamata this morning. I think he's forward enough to be very competitive.

“Sword Of State is horse with a lot of improvement in him. That's why we targeted the race at Matamata earlier this month. It looked like an ideal springboard into this. He's done everything right in between times, worked well with On The Bubbles this morning, and he's capable of running a big race on Saturday. He'll certainly appreciate a good track.

“Our other runner Avonallo is also in great order. He's been running good, honest races, and he's gone the right way since he placed in the Karaka Million.”

Richards will also tackle Saturday's showpiece Gr. 2 J Swap Contractors Matamata Breeders' Stakes with Craving. The Tivaci filly finished fourth on debut in late December, then chased home stablemate Sword Of State for third in a small field at Matamata in her only other start.

“The way Craving worked this morning, I wouldn't be surprised if she gave them a shake on Saturday,” Richards said.

“She's run a couple of nice enough races. This probably isn't the strongest Breeders' Stakes field. The best-performed two-year-old filly of the season so far would be our filly Imperatriz, who's unfortunately picked up an injury and is on box rest at the moment. So we've decided to roll the dice with Craving.”

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