NZ HARNESS NEWS
Delightful Dash makes an unlikely return to racing in Sunday’s Waimate Cup after last being sighted in New Zealand in December, 2016.
The seven-year-old daughter of Lis Mara has won 11 races and $111,000, but she hasn’t won since September of 2015, or two-and-a-half years ago.
She spent the latter half of last season racing in Australia, which didn’t go so well, and she missed to Somebeachsomewhere twice this past breeding season.
Delightful Dash is now having her fourth stint with Bruce Negus, for whom she has won five times, while she has also been with Cran Dalgety (one win), Tony Barron (five wins) in Southland and Ken and Tony Barron in Canterbury.
“She’d reached a tough mark towards the end of her time here and was finding the going a bit tough, so the plan was to race her at Menangle and get a good time on her and then bring her back for a broodmare career,” said Negus.
“I’m not sure what happened in Australia, but she didn’t look as sharp as she could, and she didn’t get in foal although I understand there were all sorts of problems there (with Somebeachsomewhere).
“So, the owners decided to put her back into work and have one more go.”
Bred by Syd Brown from the family of Foreal and Field Marshal, Delightful Dash is owned by South Australia’s David Shammall and Dunedin’s Barry Barber, who had Quick As A Trick with Negus and who also won a Wellington Cup at Trentham with Cluden Creek.
Delightful Dash raced 11 times in Australia and her best performance was arguably a close third at Menangle for John McCarthy, in a race run in 1.53.3.
She was later campaigned in Queensland by trainer Vicki Rasmussen, but the best she could manage there was a third at Albion Park last April.
Delightful Dash has had just the one workout lately at Methven last Saturday and Negus expects she will need the outing on Sunday.
“She’s a great big mare that takes a 68-inch hopple and I’d expect her to need some racing to get back to her best, having been away so long.
“For all we know her best days could be behind her, but we’ll find that out soon enough I guess.”
While Negus is not overly confident about the prospects of Delightful Dash, he does have some with his other seven-year-old mare Highland Reign, who will again be driven by wife Colleen in the race for amateur drivers.
Highland Reign was trapped three-wide in the open for the first 1000m from post nine in the same event at Motukarara last Sunday and was only just beaten by Maninthemirror.
She has drawn the second line in the first race on Sunday and “she should get a better trip from there”.
Highland Reign has been very consistent in recent months and four starts ago she was seventh, beaten five lengths in 3.09, in the NZ Standardbred Breeders Stakes.
- NZ Harness News
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