Opie Close to Return

The Informant reports:

Opie Bosson is aiming to return to race riding at Te Rapa on Foxbridge Plate day on August 19, if not the day before at Taupo.

He rode several horses for Te Akau Racing Stables - for whom he is the retained rider - at Tuesday's Te Teko trials and said he was pleased with how his fitness was progressing.

"I haven't ridden for a couple of months, so it was good to get back out there and I was actually surprised how well I coped. I must be fitter than I thought."

Among Bosson's rides was his Gr. 1 New Zealand Derby and Gr. 1 Rosehill Guineas winner Gingernuts, who was unplaced in an open heat.

"He's coming up nicely," said Bosson, who was named as a finalist for champion rider for the upcoming New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing Awards.

Bosson was New Zealand's highest stakes-earning jockey in New Zealand and Australia last season, winning Group One races on both sides as the Tasman, as well as winning in Hong Kong and claiming his first Karaka Million aboard Melody Belle.