Talented reinsman Clint Hall is confident that injury-plagued four-year-old Elegant Christian will atone for his unlucky defeat when a solidly-supported 7/4 favourite in a 2503m stand last week by winning the Ross North Homes Handicap over 2907m at Gloucester Park tonight.
The New Zealand-bred gelding will start off the 10m mark and should prove too classy for his ten rivals.
Elegant Christian settled down in seventh position in last week’s event before Hall dashed him forward after a lap in a bid to get to the breeze outside the pacemaker Hez Got The Nod. But he was kept out three wide on the next two bends before eventually getting to the breeze 1350m from home.
He took a clear lead with 450m to travel before being overhauled 200m later by stablemate Classic American. He then refused to give in and fought on doggedly to finish a neck second to Classic American.
“You would have to say that he was somewhat unlucky last week when things didn’t pan out the way we wanted,” Hall said. “After I decided to move around the field I was caught out there (three wide) longer than I wanted to be. It was not so much the period I was out there, but the fractions we were running around the corner.”
Hall said that the long journey would not trouble Elegant Christian, who is being set for the 3309m Marathon Handicap the following Friday night.
“Elegant Christian is a week-by-week proposition, but at the moment he hasn’t got any problems,” he said. “After winning at Gloucester Park last September he damaged his nearside foreleg. This required surgery to relieve some pressure on the back of his fetlock and after the operation the leg looks somewhat deformed.
“He resumed racing with a win in May, but the leg problem flared up again. We are still treating the leg and taking more precautions to manage it better.”
Elegant Christian, who is being set for the interdominion championship later this year, has won at 11 of his 15 starts and he should add another win to his record this week by proving too speedy for Danieljohn, who is racing keenly for Mundijong trainer Bruce Hawkins with three wins from his past seven starts.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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