by Michael Guerin
Aussie challenger Shane Tritton has learned a valuable lesson about taking on New Zealand’s best at tomorrow’s Harness Jewels — don’t try and be a Kiwi.
Tritton and his wife (and stable driver) Lauren train two of the five Australians at tomorrow’s huge meeting at Cambridge, with both Platinum Revolution (race one) and Pete’s Big Jim (race six) drawn the ace.
Which is exactly what the Trittons wanted and an advantage they will not be giving away.
“I have learned from campaigning horses like Salty Robyn at the Jewels before and having Suave Stuey Lombo at the NZ Cup meeting,” admits Shane Tritton.
“We have come over here and tried to race like the Kiwis, almost been fooled into it.
“With Salty Robyn at the Jewels at Ashburton we handed up to one of Mark Purdons, and I still regret it because you are not going to beat him doing that.
“We have to race the way we know best and that is to try and outstay them and get them out of their comfort zone.
“So we came here this time hoping for draws that we could do that from, to be masters of our own destiny, and we have got them. So we are going to use them.”
Tritton’s horses are well-known for their catch me if you can tactics and just a few months ago he declared a comparative outsider in Anything For Love would lead and run against powerhouses like Soho Tribeca in a Miracle Mile prelude.
He did and won his way into the Mile in typical Tritton fashion so his pre-race bravado tends to not be just hot air.
His best chance tomorrow looks to be Platinum Revolution, a horse co-bred by the voice of Addington, Mark McNamara.
She has good gate speed and is aided by the two All Stars big guns in the race, Princess Tiffany and Kayla Marie being drawn wide, meaning it should take them at least until the 1000m mark to get outside Platinum Revolution and apply any real pressure.
“She is a better filly than people realise and Mark Purdon’s pair, and the rest of them, are going to need to be good to run past her.” Pete’s Big Jim meets opposition of more depth and doesn’t have the same sparkling formline but has only been with Tritton for the last two weeks.
“He has improved a bit coming from a smaller stable and he will fly the gate. He trialled in 1:53 at Menangle last week and if this race was there on Saturday he would pace 1:52.
“Whether the others in this race can go that quick, I don’t know.” The answer is, judging on previous years, probably yes, with Jesse Duke maybe the horse peaking at the right time.
Tritton says winning in the Australian green Jewels colours would be a career highlight for Lauren and me.
“We probably have more respect for the Kiwi horses and industry than just anybody in Australia and about 90 per cent of our horses are from over here.
“So to come over here and show everybody we can train with the best of them would mean the world to me.”
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
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