Te Akau Saturday Preview - NZ & Australia

Te Akau New Zealand has five horses racing at two venues on Saturday 20 May: Te Rapa in New Zealand and Doomben in Australia.

Te Rapa:

As on Friday 19 May the conditions were: fine and Dead6, rail out 8 metres. 1.5mls rain forecast Saturday morning.

3.13 p.m. R8 3 Bishop Rock (4 g Fastnet Rock - Festival Princess) - Michael McNab; was held together after peaking on his run in front when resuming off a lengthy spell in the Rating 65 1400 metres on 11 May at Hastings, and contests the $20,000 Rating 65 1600 metres. A dominant Maiden winner second up over a mile as a three-year-old, prior to contesting the 2000 Guineas (Gr. 1, 1600m) won by stable-mate Xtravagant (Pentire), he has a wide draw to contend with but should be improved for his first up effort.

3.53 p.m. R9 17 Corporate Missile (3 f Smart Missile - Corporate) - Samantha Spratt; pressed on in the straight until tiring in holding ground on 5 May in the Rating 65 1400 metres at Pukekohe. Another drawn wide in the $20,000 Rating 65 1600 metres, two recent starts should have her in the right condition to find the line with more purpose.

4.27 p.m. R10 14 Tavis Star (5 m Tavistock - Megapins) - Michael McNab; has produced two solid trials and resumes off 196 days in the $22,500 Rating 75 1400 metres. With an ability to act in a fresh state, and no further back than fourth in four starts on the course, she is favourably drawn in barrier two and has a class factor to ensure her competitiveness.

4.27 p.m. R10 19 Rocksun (4 g Fastnet Rock - Beyond the Sunset) - rider to be advised; tracked up wide from sixth and closed solidly for fourth, just over one length from the winner, when resuming off 169 days in the Rating 75 1200 metres on 11 May at Hastings. Third on the ballot, but appearing likely to gain a start in the $22,500 Rating 75 1400 metres, his two wins have been recorded over this distance and he appears capable of another bold performance if appreciative of the course at his first attempt.

Doomben, Brisbane:

As on Friday 19 May the conditions were: overcast and Soft5, rail out 2.5 metres. 6mls rain forecast Friday.

6.36 p.m. (NZ time) R8 8 Splurge (4 g Savabeel - Splashing Out) - Opie Bosson; followed a classy trial win on 24 April with an easy victory, five days later, in the Open 1200 metres at Te Rapa, in readiness for the $125,000 BRC Sprint Handicap (Gr. 3, 1350m). He announced himself with an impressive closing sprint to win the Darley Plate (Gr. 3, 1200m) on Derby Day in March at Ellerslie, has won seven of his previous nine starts, developed a terrific relationship with the rider, and highly respected in the betting market ($5.00). Another top performance, which could be subject to the deteriorating track conditions, would set him up for the $1.5m Stradbroke Handicap (Gr. 1, 1400m) on 10 June at Eagle Farm.

Racenet analysis: SPLURGE has been in top form in NZ winning 6 of his last 7 outings including a Group 3. He runs on strongly and may be hard to hold off.