Wait A Sec had
Starting one of the
Wait A Sec ($26) needed no further invitation and darted through to strike the front, getting there a short head in front of the late finishing Gingernuts ($1.80 fav) on the outside with Endean Rose ($78) a
Trained in partnership by Grant Cullen and Guy Lowry, the seven-year-old Wait A Sec has now won six of his last eight starts.
Cullen trains locally and told NZ Racing Desk the rescheduled Group I contest was too tempting to refuse.
"We tossed up about backing him up after his Egmont Cup win last week but he pulled up so well from Hawera it was hard not to," Cullen said.
"This is huge for Hawkes Bay to win this race with a local, it's a real thrill."
Cullen said a change to the training routine of Wait A Sec had produced a different horse
"He's just happy - we've changed his training regime around and we work him at home and around the farm. He's just a very happy horse and is very fit."
The Group III Christchurch Casino Cup in November had been the original spring goal for Wait A
"We will have to talk about where he goes as the Cup might not be so necessary now," he advised.
"To be honest we hadn't made any other plans as the New Zealand Cup was our goal but we will see how he pulls up and sit down and work something out."
