Te Akau 2YO Trio Ready to Strike

The Informant reports:

Six weeks on from their unprecedented five-horse assault on the Karaka Million, Te Akau Racing are ready to unleash another two-year-old armada at Ellerslie.

Three of the eight runners in Saturday's Gr. 1 Sistema Stakes will carry the Te Akau tangerine and blue - Avantage, Sword Of Osman and The Real Beel.

Avantage takes top billing with four starts for four impressive wins, culminating in the Karaka Million on January 27.

“We're very pleased with how she's looking heading into Saturday,” co-trainer Jamie Richards told The Informant.

“She worked nicely last week, and her gallop this (Tuesday) morning was excellent.  If she performs particularly impressively this weekend she might go to Sydney, and there's also the option of the Manawatu Sires' Produce Stakes.”

Avantage was ridden by Te Akau's number-one jockey Opie Bosson in the Karaka Million, but he switches to Sword Of Osman on Saturday.

“Opie's struggling a bit with his weight so he'll ride the boy, Matt Cameron will be on Avantage and Danielle Johnson will ride The Real Beel,” Richards explained.

Michael McNab, who usually has second call on Te Akau rides, has opted to ride Nigel Tiley's unbeaten filly Melt.

Sword Of Osman was a brilliant debut winner at Awapuni in December, then finished six lengths behind his stablemate in eighth place in the Karaka Million in his second start. The son of Savabeel bounced back in style at Matamata last time out, winning the Gr. 3 Reid & Harrison Slipper by almost six lengths.

“We rate him very highly, so it was good to see him back to his best with that performance,” Richards said. “He was impressive.

“He just got a bit lost in the Karaka Million, but hopefully he learned from that experience and will benefit from having had that first look around Ellerslie. The smaller field may help him this weekend. He's a horse who's improving and maturing all the time.”

Like Sword Of Osman, The Real Beel was a debut winner before finishing outside the placings in the Karaka Million - crossing the line in 10th place after working hard from the extreme outside gate. In her only start since then, the Savabeel filly finished third in the Gr. 2 Matamata Breeders' Stakes.

“She hasn't had a lot of luck,” Richards said. “She's another one who's been improving significantly. She worked alongside Avantage this morning and went very well. If she gets the right run, she can certainly be very competitive.”