After failing to get in foal last season, Chantilly Lace (NZ) (US Navy Flag) is progressing well toward black-type targets before connections turn their focus back to her breeding career.
The daughter of U S Navy Flag will step out in Saturday’s Trust House Masterton Cup (1400m) at Trentham as a forerunner to further stakes opportunities.
Chantilly Lace will be making the third appearance of her campaign, and the prospect of soft ground will provide her with the ideal stage to showcase her talent.
“Obviously, she didn’t get in foal so we’re having another crack, this race works in perfectly for her,” trainer Chrissy Bambry said.
A winner at Listed level in the Wanganui Guineas (1200m) and Castletown Stakes (1200m), Chantilly Lace is likely to return to Windsor Park Stud stallion Paddington, a four-time Group One-winning son of Siyouni, later this year.
In the interim, the mare will have chances to boost her future broodmare value.
“If she goes well on Saturday, she’ll back up in the Rangitikei Gold Cup (Listed, 1600m) and then head to Wanganui for the weight-for-age (Listed AGC Training Stakes, 1600m), in which she was a really unlucky fourth last year,” Bambry said.
Chantilly Lace opened this preparation when unplaced at Ellerslie and then finished fourth in an open handicap sprint at Wanganui.
“I’m really happy with her, she’s come up very well and the tracks were just a bit firm for her,” Bambry said.
“The 1400m on a softer track on Saturday should be right up her alley with no weight (54kg) on her back.”
Chantilly Lace will be accompanied to Trentham by her promising stablemate Dubai’s Potitki (NZ) (Ocean Park), who runs in The Cossack Handicap (2200m).
He has yet to win but showed his staying quality two runs back when runner-up to Kiwi Skyhawk in the Gr.3 Manawatu Classic (2100m).
“He’s got all the ability in the world, and it’s just taken a long time for the penny to drop,” Bambry said.
“Just his greenness beat him that day, if he had taken the gap that Ryan (Elliot) had showed him at the 300m he might have gone close to winning.
“He’s been a work in progress and he’s going to be a very, very good horse. I can see some nice Cups in his future.”
Dubai’s Potiki finished midfield last time out in the Gr.3 Championship Stakes (2100m).
“He went up to Ellerslie for his first trip away and handled it really well, so we thought we might get another good run before the tracks get too wet for him.”
The stable had thoughts of a tilt at the Gr.1 Queensland Derby (2400m) with the son of Ocean Park and the venture hasn’t been completely ruled out.
“If he had gone well at Ellerslie, that’s where we were going and obviously if he was to come out and go really well at Trentham there’s always a chance he could still go, but it will be his last chance,” Bambry said. By Ocean Park, Dubai’s Potiki is the last live foal of the E Dubai mare Dubai Belle, a gifted performer who won nine races including the Gr.3 Merial Mile when trained by Bambry’s father Tony.