She's a (Winning) Show Off

After trialling superbly, Its Our Showtime (4 m Showcasing - Be Inspired, by Zabeel) resumed with an impressive victory in the $20,000 Mount Shop Rating 65 1200 metres on Saturday at Pukekohe.

An easy winner in May for the Fortuna Its Our Showtime Syndicate (Mgr: John Galvin), she had been patiently handled since then by trainers Stephen Autridge & Jamie Richards and it was a more furnished article that fronted recently at the trials on 10 January at Cambridge.

The resultant fourth, without rider Opie Bosson moving a muscle, behind three stakes performers was enough for her to start a $3.50 & $1.60 favourite on the tote ($3.20 & $1.35 fixed).

David Ellis, Te Akau principal, picked up the story on her purchase:

“After the yearling sales that year (2014) I needed to buy a couple more horses and John (Galvin) wanted to get another horse. I looked at fifteen horses that were for sale in the paddock and I rang John and said I'd seen a horse in Cambridge that was owned by James Chapman at Jamieson Park. She was out of a Zabeel mare. So I selected the horse, purchased it and John Galvin syndicated it.”

Away well from a tricky draw to settle in fifth, Its Our Showtime was pushed three wide at the 800m but rider Cameron Lammas never panicked. He kept her balanced rounding the home turn, quickened on to lead at the 300m and after changing stride a furlong out she came clear to win easily.

Under a substantial weight impost (58.5kgs), and resuming off 203 days, Its Our Showtime galloped to a very good time of 1:10.9, last 600m in 33.9, for the 1200 metres on Dead4 footing.

“Obviously she's a very talented mare and Steve and Jamie have been very patient with her,” Galvin said.

“She's had a couple of injury setbacks throughout her career but she won her Maiden race by four lengths last autumn, was unlucky when beaten a nose at Ruakaka, and the team think quite a lot of her. They feel she can be right up there with the best of them, so we'll take her along quietly and see where we finish up.

“She's a lovely athletic filly, doesn't carry a lot of condition, so each programme needs to see her lightly raced in a campaign.

“In the run today she was three wide at times, four wide as they turned but kicked away strongly and withheld all the challengers. It was her first run back for over six months, so it was a nice result.”

A winner twice over 1200 metres, Its Our Showtime has strong staying pedigree influences from Epsom Derby winners Sir Ivor (the sire of Sir Tristram) and Mill Reef to suggest she could also shine over more distance.

Its Our Showtime was strapped by Kerry Jones.

Photo credit - www.raceimages.co.nz