By Mac Henry
Titan Banner took his earnings past $200,000 by winning the 3200 metre Wyndham Cup in 3:58.9 on Saturday and his driver Dexter Dunn was full of praise.
“He felt awesome and went great,” Dunn said of the Art Major five year old who is a half brother to Mainland Banner.
Put up for auction at the 2013 premier sale, Titan Banner was acquired by Westwood Beach (near Dunedin) trainer Graeme Anderson as a means of upgrading his team. Initially, he hadn’t been that ambitious. Titan Banner was being prepared for the sale by Dennis Moore at Templeton, as was Sovereign Banner, a Bettor’s Delight colt that interested Anderson.
“I went to check out Sovereign Banner before the sale, they brought out Titan Banner for me to inspect as well,” Anderson said. “I’d thought he’d be out of my league so hadn’t considered him but when I looked at him, I thought “I want him”.”
Anderson went to $80,000 for Titan Banner and was soon able to find partners. Dave McHugh, John Cheesman, Janet O’Connor, Pauline Gillan and Anne Blakely joined him in the ownership. Sovereign Banner was put up the following day and Anderson was also successful in buying him, having to go to only $13,000 for the half brother to Mach Banner. Although the winner of six of his 12 starts, Anderson points out Sovereign Banner is on a lower plain than Titan Banner.
Prepared by Anderson, Titan Banner made a winning debut as a three year old at Forbury Park in October 2014. He’d won nine by April last year when Anderson passed Titan Banner to the All Stars stable and another three before he got him back eight months later. Titan Banner had been in Auckland with the Purdon Rasmussen team and was due to fly to Melbourne when he hurt a leg in a paddock incident.
“He had 10 days off in Auckland after that then we sent him down to Graeme on the beach,” Mark Purdon reported.
Anderson said he had the leg scanned, everything was fine, so with a bit of racing coming up plus an ocean nearby, he put him back in work.
“He was like a boy who had been to boarding school and came back as a man, he’d developed and matured, was much stronger, sharper, happy to be here. He never stresses, we’ve waited and we’re getting our rewards.”
Missing out on the overseas trip didn’t worry Anderson who said Titan Banner had had a hard Auckland Cup Week and banging the leg could well have been a blessing. “Never worry about what might have been,” he added.
Before Saturday’s Wyndham Cup victory, Anderson said Titan Banner had been working two and a quarter miles in a straight line on the beach in the fashion of a horse that was ready. This week it’s the 2700 metre $40,000 Yaldhurst Hotel Northern Southland Cup at Ascot Park and after that, Anderson will look towards Addington for options ahead of the main target, the $100,000 group one Easter Cup on 15 April.
Later, Dunn combined with Anderson again to win aboard All Star Magician. It was the third win for Dunn on a day dominated by visiting reinsmen and favourites. Blair Orange also landed three, Matt Anderson won the two junior driver contests, while John Dunn won the feature. Southerners Alan Beck and Nathan Williamson picked up the other two. Favourites won seven of the eleven and added two seconds and a third.
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