Promising Signs for Ready to Run Star

Media Release - Tuesday July 24

Promising two-year-old Alfa Oro will be looking to make it two from two tomorrow for trainer Matt Laurie when he lines up in the Ladbrokes Back Yourself Handicap (1300m) at Sandown.

Alfa Oro in the ring at KarakaThe Bachelor Duke gelding won impressively on debut by six lengths, indicating he could be one to watch in the spring.

"I have been excited to get him to the races," Laurie said. "He has been a two-year-old that I have been impressed by and I was looking forward to seeing what he could do.

"I certainly wasn't expecting him to perform quite that well. He was pretty dominant, he was probably well placed, but he ran a very fast time and just looked very professional doing it.

"It is going to be interesting watching him tomorrow at Sandown."

Laurie has been happy with Alfa Oro's work since and has continued to show he has a lot of ability.

"He worked with an older horse on Saturday and she is a city winner herself and won a few dollars and he was able to camp off her and work over the top comfortably enough. The signs are there that he's a decent horse," he said.

"Tomorrow I'm not too sure whether we end up leading. It's not necessarily what I want, but there doesn't seem to be much speed in the race. If that's the case, I'll just let Ben (Melham, jockey) sum it up.

Advertisement

"I wouldn't swap him for anything, he's a pretty decent horse and hopefully he does win."

Laurie went to $240,000 to secure Alfa Oro from the draft of Regal Farm at New Zealand Bloodstock's Ready to Run Sale last year and he is starting to fulfil the promise his trainer saw in him less than ten months ago.

"I didn't want to pay that much, but I really liked the horse," Laurie said. "I thought he had a lot of Fastnet Rock about him. He's out of Fastnet Lady, a Fastnet Rock mare, and he just had the right shape and physique that I look for and I thought he breezed up in a manner where he looked like he had a fair bit left under the hood.

"That crossed with a mare who has already produced a decent horse by Domesday (dual stakes winner Five to Midnight). I don't know much about Bachelor Duke, but it didn't concern me because she looked like she had done a pretty good job already."

Alfa Oro will head for a quick break after tomorrow, with Laurie eyeing a Guineas path in the spring for his rising three-year-old.

"We'll just back off him a bit," Laurie said. "It's quite late in the season, ideally you'd like to give them a little bit longer to freshen-up leading into some decent stakes racing.

"But it is what it is and we'll probably give him a light break for 10 to 14 days and then work it out from there. But at this stage you could look towards those races leading into a Guineas." – NZ Racing Desk.

Advertisment
More Reading...
Invincible 2YO Colt wins for Bennett Racing
The $150,000 VRC Next Gen Sprinters Series Final (1200m) for two year-olds at Flemington on Saturday drew a competitive field of progressive juveniles and the colt that stood out on type in the yard was the one that got the cash with I Am Invincible colt Jimmy Recard proving too good for race favourite Bacash.
Flemington Victory for Tarzino Mare
Quirky but talented mare Miss Tarzy has come from last win the Leilani Series Final (1400m) under a patient Jett Stanley ride.
Snitzel Filly Bridal Waltz Wins A.R. Creswick Stakes
While many felt the winner of Saturday’s Listed $175,000 VRC A.R. Creswick Stakes (1200m) had raced two weeks prior in the Shop Flemington Handicap (1100m) – and they would’ve been correct – but it was not the result many punters felt it would be!
Invincible 3YO Wins G3 Winx Guineas
The $300,000 Group III Winx Guineas (1600m) at the Sunshine Coast on Saturday featured a big field of 16 up and comers and following the late scratching of favourite Mister Bianco, Angela Jones took luck out of the equation on I Am Invincible gelding The Three Hundred.
Marble Nine Brings Up Second SW For Aquis Sire Kobayashi
The withdrawal of the top weight in Saturday’s $175,000 Listed VRC Santa Ana Lane Sprint Series Final (1200m) at Flemington saw the field down to just six, with Marble Nine continuing his outstanding recent form to secure his first black type victory.
Sweet Redemption for Stable Favourite Jimmy the Bear
Patrick and Michelle Payne enjoyed a red letter day at Flemington on Saturday with their rising star Buccleuch winning the Listed VRC Taj Rossi Series Final and then later in the day stable favourite Jimmy the Bear won the Listed VRC Winter Championship Series Final (1600m).
Pride’s Outsider Estadio Mestalla Wins Winter Stakes
The lone stakes race on Rosehill’s ten-race card on Saturday saw Joe Pride’s race outsider Estadio Mestalla (Galileo Gold) take out the $200,000 Listed ATC Winter Stakes (1400m) in a boilover.
Buccleuch - First Stakes-Winner for Peltzer
The $175,000 Listed VRC Taj Rossi Series Final (1600m) at Flemington on Saturday was won back in 2020 by Cherry Tortoni, who went to on to become a multiple Group winner of nearly $1million and the same colours were carried by this year’s winner Buccleuch.
Kiwi Bred Good Banter Finds Winning Form
Four-year-old mare Good Banter was back in the winner’s circle when narrowly prevailing in the Catanach's Jewellers Handicap (2000m) at Rosehill on Saturday for trainers John O’Shea and Tom Charlton.
Divine Prophet’s Fortunate Kiss Captures Elusive Black Type Win
With nine top five finishes in previous black type races, it was better late than never as 6yo Divine Prophet mare Fortunate Kiss charged along the inside to win the $300,000 Listed Glasshouse Handicap (1400m) at the Sunshine Coast on Saturday – her first black type victory.