New Zealand Racing, 2012-13

[my miss storm cat]

Why is he out? What on earth happened?

That's a shame.

SO excited! Oooh and The Hombre and Durham Town and oh Pinzaara... how exciting!!!!

Feel like I'm having a heart attack!

[_ed_]

I think there was a big offer for an overseas sale that they were considering - might have been Hong Kong. I guess that must have gone through, and the new owners want him straight away. A shame, but I think he'll do well there.

[my miss storm cat]

I just read this and figured I'd post it. Glad he's not going to hk and you know how much I love them there but yeah..... the next Ocean Park sounds good to me.

No author listed.

Wallace pulls the pin on Valbuena Derby aspirations

28 February 2013, 11:13 a.m.

Takanini trainer Bruce Wallace yesterday withdrew Valbuena from the three-year-old Classic after consulting with breeder-owners Peter and Philip Vela.

Wallace said it had been a tough decision and his racing manager Allan Peard had been keen to push ahead and start but after factoring in his physical immaturity, not having their preferred choice of jockey - Mark Du Plessis - and the complications of a failed sale, the outcome was to turn him out.

''It was toss of the coin stuff,'' Wallace said yesterday.

''Allan was very keen to start him and if he'd won we'd have looked heroes but if he didn't we'd have said he's still six months away and really we already know that now.

''He was always going to need time. It was his achillies heel and James [McDonald] underwrote that when he won on him in the Avondale Guineas and he said then he wondered whether we'd got to the bottom of him.

''He's 16.2 hands high and if I stand beside him he's probably only same as me wide so we'll send him to the paddock and give him time to develop. Mentally he's matured a heap but he still needs to mature physically.

''There was talk he could go to Brisbane for the winter but I'd rather turn him out for a long spell and then look at Hastings, Sydney and Melbourne in the spring and hopefully he might be the next Ocean Park with a bit of luck.''

Valbuena was under offer soon after his Avondale Guineas win on February 17 which had led to some doubt about his participation in the Derby and at that point Du Plessis was told to take another ride and he was booked for Fix.

Wallace yesterday said negotiations between the Vela brothers and the Hong Kong interest had failed to reach an agreement.

''There was genuine interest in him from Hong Kong and there were deliberations about the price aspirations of the owners through this whole process,'' Wallace said.

''He's still for sale and he's the same horse he was when he won the Avondale Guineas but the reality is he's still six months away. We'll still have a Derby runner with Deane Martin in the race but he's largely been the forgotten horse the last couple of weeks.''

Valbuena's withdrawal enabled the Stephen McKee-trained The Grinner to clinch the last spot in the 18-horse field for the Derby, which will be run at 5.46pm and broadcast around the world, including for the first time in three years to Hong Kong, where betting will be allowed.

Favourite Habibi drew barrier one and is the $2.80 favourite.

[_ed_]

Oh, interesting. Well, it's good that they're thinking of the horse and his physical developent, but it is a shame - he would have been in my top three picks for sure.

Derby odds:
Choice Bro 14
Castlzeberg 5
Zinko 26
Deane Martin 14
Weissmuller 16
Addictive Habit 50
King Kamada 26
Solar Eclipse 60
Corporal Lincoln 60
Alert 14
Dubai Shuffle 26
Saint Kitt 80
Celtic Chief 31
The Grinner 30
Fix 9
Habibi 2.80f
Soriano 18
Kidwelly 30

[_ed_]

And here are some of the more interesting probables for the other big races later in the week.

G1 Auckland Cup (Wed)
Sangster
Annie Higgins
Chaparrone
Spiro
Blood Brotha
My Scotsgrey
Single Minded


G3 Sunline Vase (Wed)
Abidewithme
Atacama
Costume
More Than Sacred
Aurora Lights
Ray's Girl


G3 Westbury Classic (Wed)
Xanadu
Planet Rock
Fazzle


G1 Diamond Stakes (Sat)
Ruud Awakening
Bounding


G1 NZ Stakes (Sat)
Veyron
Ocean Park
Artistic


G3 Mr Tiz Trophy (Sat)
Rollout The Carpet

[_ed_]

Derby jockeys who have won it before:

JONATHAN RIDDELL (Choice Bro) – Jimmy Choux 2011

MICHAEL WALKER (Weissmuller) – Military Move 2010

VINNIE COLGAN (Habibi) – Redoute’s Dancer 2007, Helene Vitality 1999, Zonda 1997, Roysyn 1995 (equal record for most NZ Derby wins by a jockey)

MICHAEL COLEMAN (Kidwelly) – Xcellent 2004, Cut The Cake 2003

NOEL HARRIS (King Kamada) – Hail 2000

[my miss storm cat]

Crazy odds on Zinko, didn't realize who that was abord Xcellent (I know... how did I not know that?! Duh.), and whoa those are looking like some fields!

Every day I'm overwhelmed and you've just added to it!

Easy for me to sit here doing nothing and ask you BUT... The Grinner? Can you profile him when and if you have the time?

Thanks ed!