Group Three winner Spencer (NZ) (Derryn) will have a new trainer next to his name in the racebook when he heads to Wanganui on Saturday to contest the Manawatu ITM 1340.
Previously trained by Erin Hocquard in Waverley, Spencer has recently joined the Matamata barn of Peter and Shaun McKay, for whom he will have his first start this weekend.
The six-year-old son of Derryn was a standout for Hocquard, having won eight and placed in five of his 26 starts for the South Taranaki horsewoman, including victory in last year’s Gr.3 Spring Sprint (1400m) and second placing in the Listed Opunake Cup (1400m).
He resumed with a winning performance over 1200m at Trentham in September before returning to the Upper Hutt track last month where he finished sixth over the same distance.
Shortly after that run he transferred to the care of the McKays, who are delighted to have a horse of his quality join their barn.
“He arrived to us about three weeks ago in good condition and he is looking good,” Peter McKay said. “He seems a pretty happy and easy horse to have around.
“It is going to be pretty hard to try to improve on what he has done, he has been a pretty good horse.”
McKay said he is still getting a feel for the talented gelding but he is looking forward to stepping him out for the first time this weekend before he heads to Trentham in a fortnight to try and defend his crown in the Spring Sprint.
“We are going to learn a bit about him on Saturday,” McKay said. “We are just feeling out things with him at the moment.
“This race is a lead-up to the Group Three race at Wellington that he won at Te Rapa last year.
“At this stage, that is one of his main aims and we will work things out from there. He is high up in the ratings (100) but there are plenty of races around that he could have a go at.”
McKay will also head to Wanganui with promising three-year-old Faultless, who was runner-up last start to subsequent Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) runner-up Affirmative Action.
The son of Tivaci is being set for the Listed Trevor & Corallie Eagle Memorial 3YO (1500m) at Ellerslie on Saturday week, and McKay said he is giving him a run in the Happy Hire 3YO 1200 to keep him up to the mark for next week’s stakes test.
“It was either go to this race or trial him on Tuesday at Taupo,” McKay said. “His main aim is at Ellerslie next Saturday and we have found that if you space his races too much he just gets a bit above himself.
“He hasn’t done too much between runs. He had a gallop yesterday (Tuesday) and he is ticking over really nicely.”
Evergreen galloper Sagunto will also represent the stable in the G Bristol & Sons 2040, while Manorbier will contest the Wanganui Insurance Brokers Maiden 1340.
“Sagunto has slowly dropped himself down in the ratings but there is nothing to push him down in weight,” McKay said. We will take a three-kilo claim off him (to bring his weight down to 57kg). He is slowly coming to hand, he has taken a while to get his condition off him. He is not the easiest horse to get the weight off him.
“Manorbier is looking for that bit of cut in the ground. If there is a bit of sting out of the ground, he should be all good.”
Meanwhile, McKay said Wolfgang has returned to Matamata in fine fettle following his unplaced run in the Gr.3 New Zealand Cup (3200m) at Riccarton last Saturday, where he failed to handle the adverse conditions.
“He is home safe and happy,” he said. “I am wishing I didn’t start. I had thought about scratching him on the day, but we were down there and with the cost of getting there I thought we better run. In hindsight I probably shouldn’t have run him on that sort of track, it was not to his liking at all.”
Further Cups targets are now in the offing, with McKay contemplating a tilt at next month’s Gr.3 SkyCity Hamilton Waikato Cup (2400m) and January’s Gr.3 NZ Campus Of Innovation & Sport Wellington Cup (3200m), a race he won at Trentham earlier this year.
“We have pencilled in the Waikato Cup, otherwise there are some races down in Wellington. We will just see how he comes through it and how he is feeling,” McKay said.
“The big worry now is that any of the Cups races he is going to be carrying 59kg.
“We have nominated for the Wellington Cup and it is still on the cards, we have just got to decide what we are going to do. There are a couple of set weights and penalty races down there which suits him along the way, and if he doesn’t go to the Wellington Cup, we might go to the St Leger, which is set weights and penalties.”