Latest news with #LucyInTheSky
NZ Herald
04-05-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Horse racing: Cambridge Stud savours Champagne success
The $1.30 favourite controlled the race from there and was travelling easily coming up to the home turn. Te Akau Racing filly Queen's Evidence briefly loomed as a threat on her outside coming into the straight, but Lucy In The Sky quickened again and left her behind. She dashed to victory by a length and three-quarters, with Queen's Evidence finishing another four lengths clear of the third-placed Alottago. Lucy In The Sky clocked 1m 09.77s for the 1200m. 'Tony Pike asked me if I'd come down here to ride her today and it was an absolute no-brainer,' Fawcett said. 'She's still a bit green – she changed legs early in the race and actually jumped a shadow. But she's a class horse and she still managed to get the job done. I was confident turning for home that she was going to put them away easily.' Lucy In The Sky has now had three starts for two wins, earning $77,250 in stakes. Pike was pleased to add valuable black type to the filly's CV, while the trip down to Christchurch – albeit to race on a different surface – will also hold her in good stead ahead of a potential Group 1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) campaign in the spring. 'We came down here to try to get a stakes win on the board, so it's mission accomplished in that sense,' Pike said. 'She'll also go down in history as the first horse to win a black-type race on the synthetic [track] in New Zealand. 'She's a really nice filly who ran in a Group 1 race up north. She still has a bit to learn, so it's all positive heading into her 3-year-old season. I think the best two fillies ran the quinella today and have the makings of good 3-year-olds. 'Our filly had to work a bit to get across and lead, but she's done it well. I told Jasmine to just allow her to get into rhythm, which she did. 'There's a lot of water to go under the bridge yet, but it would be great to see her back here in November for the 1000 Guineas.' Lucy In The Sky and Queen's Evidence continued a dominant run for fillies in the Champagne Stakes. They have now won 10 of the last 11 runnings, with the only exception coming from Te Akau gelding Discretion Rules last year. Before that, the winners were Illicit Dreams (2023), Diss Is Dramatic (2022), Unusual Countess (2021), All About Magic (2019 – race not run in 2020), Secret Allure (2018), Prom Queen (2017), Zigwig (2016), Peach Cove (2015) and Elusive Catch (2014).
NZ Herald
02-05-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Riccarton mud bath avoided as racing bosses get flexible
Punters who bet into the meeting before the switch have had those bets refunded and the meeting was re-opened for betting with scratchings put back into the fields on Thursday night. What punters end up with is a meeting certain to go ahead while the trainers chasing valuable black type with their two-year-olds in the Champagne Stakes at least know they will have a fairer surface. The Champagne Stakes remaining black type had to be approved by the Pattern Committee, the group charged with maintaining the quality of New Zealand black type racing. 'The switch to the synthetic has to be a good move because I don't think punters enjoy seeing horses trying to handle a Heavy 10 if they don't have to,' says Cambridge trainer Tony Pike, who has Lucy In The Sky in the feature. 'Sure, it probably helps our filly because I was worried about the very heavy track but in reality we would have struggled to even run the whole meeting on the turf. 'Taking my horse out of it I see no issues running a black type race on a synthetic track. You wouldn't do it every week but I think all round the right decisions have been made for the industry.' Lucy In The Sky comes out of the Group 1 Sistema Stakes at Ellerslie last start so drops enormously in grade today and while her $2.50 price last night wasn't enormous overs she could close significantly shorter today. Pike has a team of eight at Te Rapa today too and is confident of starting the day with a winner, he just doesn't know which horse. 'I think I can win Race 1 but I am not sure who is the better chance out of High Country or Poetic Justice,' he says. With the pair at boosted odds of $6.50 and $5.50 respectively smart punters looking for an early TAB account bump could do worse than backing them both. The Te Rapa meeting also holds a black type juvenile race as those opportunities start to run dry for the babies but it has a far more even feel, with a Karaka Millions runner like Toretto against those who have emerged over the autumn. Across the Tasman there will be Kiwi flavour at both Eagle Farm (Queensland) and Morphettville (South Australia), with Cambridge trainer Stephen Marsh having runners at both. Marsh has Roctave (R8, No.10) in the A$1million South Australian Derby while Tardelli, who was narrowly beaten against the older horses in the Easter at Ellerslie last start, contests the A$350,000 Queensland Guineas with Michael McNab to ride.
