09 July 2015
by Terry Neil
By his own admission, he’s had a quiet time in the gig at his home track recently, but that all changed for Steve Turnbull last Friday when he bagged a winning treble at Group One Feeds Paceway. He now sits just two wins behind daughter Amanda in the drivers premiership, and with her visits back home becoming less frequent, there’s some chance he will regain the title he dominated for many years before her rise to the top.
Regardless of the local premiership result, it’s clear that he’s lost none of the skills that have kept him in the top echelon of Australian drivers for several decades now. He’s just as good as ever. His winners were Smithstars Lexus in a 2C0-2C2 sprint, Missed By Red in a 2260 metres C0, and stable debutant Macworthy in the 2260 metres C2-C5 that concluded the meeting.
Smithstars Lexus started at the good odds of $5.30 in a very strong field, and took his record to three wins from four starts after working his way to the death from outside the front line, and then showing real tenacity to out-stay Allnight Story and favourite Machamillion NZ. The last half took 58.3, for a smart mile rate of 1:57.6.
Turnbull is impressed by the winner’s toughness, and feels that he will take a little longer to develop the top-end speed that’s in his make-up, citing older half-brother Lexus On The Beach as an example. By leading sire Rock N Roll Heaven, he’s from champion broodmare Panoramic Lady, and thus a half-brother to Derby winner Make Me Smile, Sires champion Can’t Bluff Me and outstanding mare Lady Lexus, who ran her fastest time of 1:52.3 at her final race start at five. Turnbull is aiming the colt at the upcoming Australasian Breeders Crown series.
Missed By Red, a three-year-old filly taking on older horses and drawn outside the front, nevertheless started as $1.50 favourite, and justified that assessment with a very gritty win, after working hard three-wide for the first 1000 metres before finding the front. She held on to defeat The Marshall and The Rag Doll, which also did plenty of work after coming three-wide from the bell. The winner came back to scale with her off-side tyre off the rim, this happening, fortunately, just after the winning post.
Macworthy ($2.90 favourite) was taken straight to the front by Turnbull in the final event, and had the race in his keeping throughout, quickening over the last half in 57.7 seconds, for a narrow but convincing win over Menangle visitor Bettermore NZ and Hand For Tilly. The four-year-old was having his first start for the stable, after being sent north by Riverina owner Les Johnson, who’d previously raced a half-brother Desirable Guy with Steve Turnbull.
Nathan Turnbull, Steve’s “comeback kid”, also enjoyed the day out on Friday when he drove a double, and remarkably, both carried number 13 saddlecloth. Miss Fifi ($46.00), his winner in a C1-backed conditioned event over the 1730 metres trip, came with a sharp sprint to overhaul leader Sure What Ever and Postal Express, to give the three-year-old filly her maiden win at start number seventeen.
Nathan recounted how he’d agreed to trainer Stacey Hardy’s request that he drive the filly, only to check on her form and nearly baulk at the idea! Stacey was perfectly happy to cop the ribbing from her driver, who did suggest that the filly appeared to be getting the hang of it all now.
The winner is a true product of Young. Her youthful and enthusiastic trainer is the grand-daughter of Bob Hardy, who bred and trained many winners in that district, and she trains from his former property. The filly’s sire is Speed King, who died earlier this year at Kenny Smith’s ‘Mimosa Banks’ Stud at the grand old age of 30, with a handful of foals born last spring his final representatives. What a remarkable sire he’s been.
The second leg of Nathan Turnbull’s double came with his own stable’s Left Neglected ($6.00) in a 2260 metres C2-backed conditioned event. The Fake Left five-year-old, a close relative of Blacks A Fake, raced outside the leader for the last lap, and was too strong for leader Shes So Foxy and The Matrix NZ.
Nathan and owner Gary Davis paid tribute to equine chiropractor Garry Christou – famous for his efforts with Takeover Target – for not only sorting out the horse’s back issues, but pointing to a sight problem which explained why the horse was throwing his head around in races. As a result, he sported new “eyewear”, raced much more truly and the result was a good win.
Other winners at the well-attended school holiday meeting:
Miss Rodriguez ($1.40 favourite, Wayne White/Jason Turnbull), highly impressive in a 2260 metres 3C0, missing away after dropping a boot, and getting home off a 57.1 last half, for a dominant win;
Grinear Girl ($5.70, David Hewitt) , all the way in a 3YO sprint, with each quarter well under 30 seconds, to set up a career-best 1:55.6 mile rate.
Hugh Patrick (($19.90, John McGuire/John O’Shea), in a C2-backed Encouragement sprint, the third win this term for a horse with Irish connections, green racing colours and sired by Sir Guinness;
Long Dirt Road ($2.90 favourite, Bernie Hewitt), in the 2260 metres C1-C2 Penrith Mayors Cup heat, after enjoying the one-one at his first run back in several months.
Friday racing continues at Bathurst, with a twilight/evening meeting this week.
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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