TREACHEROUS BABY is poised for a big run in the New Zealand Oaks tomorrow and all going well she is the leading chance-if she can just have a little more luck than Mum -O Baby- had back in 2012.
O Baby had won the Sires Stakes Fillies Final at two and the Nevele R Final at three going into the Oaks (then held in May) as third favourte behind Elusive Chick and stablemate Twist and Twirl. Natalie had to make two charges on a reluctant conceder before reaching the lead and it was immediately contested.
For a time it looked a race winning move camped in the trali but then the lead was ceded twice more leaving O Baby in a precarious position on the rail at the turn and relying on the passing lane to get back in the race. She finished so strongly for a tight third to Cheer the Lady and Twist and Twirl to suggest she could have won with a clear run in the straight.She went on to win the Queensland Oaks soon afterward.
Nathan is not looking for that sort of luck tomorrow.
“The gate is a sort of no mans land but over 2600m I don’t think that is a major factor. The way she went in the Nevele R final suggests the distance won’t be against her though you don’t know until they’ve run it. She had to sprint more than once last time which was an encouraging sign because she had been a sit and sprint horse up until then.I would like to think we can land in front of Duchess Megxit and get the run we need to beat her.”
The Oaks was once a nemesis race for the Purdon stables but that all changed when Adore Me broke the stable duck in 2013. Since then has added seven more and there was no race in 2020. It is always a valuable guide to future stars too as Treacherous Baby has already shown thanks to O Baby.
Purdon was still the name to back in the classic, Barry,co-trainer of Duchess Megxit also being a past master with Oaks winners.
The 2012 field included,beside Twist and Twirl -whose first foal was King of Swing and a later filly Bettor Twist won the NZ Oaks for in 2021 when Hayden Cullen managed the stable,Natalie at the helm..Also in the field was Dancing Diamonds, dam of Princess Tiffany who was raced in partnership by Braeden and Caroline Whitelock with Phil and Margaret Creighton, and who still holds the Oaks race record at a remarkable 3.08.2.She has produced her own sale topper in the ring. Then there was Pemberton Shard,dam of the $280,000 yearling Moet Shard for owners Mark and Debbie Smith among others.
Duchess Megxit, Treacherous Baby’s main rival tomorrow also has close links with the stable. Her dam Kensington Kate is a sister to Piccadilly Princess a Group 1 winning the Victorian Oaks, Harness Jewels and Ladyship Mile (1.50.4) winner for the Purdon stable and the Patterson family who race Duchess Megxit.Piccadilly Princess,who came out the same year as Dream About Me, ran a good 4th in the 2016 NZ Oaks.
It promises to be a great battle of tactics with the two standout fillies but Nathan is not discounting the place chances of ARDEN’S MEMORY either.
“She lacks the high speed of the other two but if she got the right run and got a go at them down the straight she is a real trier and can place”
DEMON BLUE is in that same position in the disappointingly small field for the $100,000 Ace Two Year Old field.
“Hard to see us beating Marketplace on how he is going and the draw so a top 3 will be a good result. ” Nathan said
He expects a top run from CHASE A DREAM but warns that he will improve with the run.
“He needs this before the Derby so there is a bit left there.Still hard to beat but I am expecting more from VESSEM this week” Nathan said of the disappointing run from the talented pacer last time.
“I think it was a mixture of things and mostly lack of racing.His buildup had not been ideal.He is doing everything right at home.The smaller field will suit his style of racing and when you have Greg (Sugars) in the cart-well they don’t come much better”
The focus then turns to the Green Mile on Sunday one of the last assignments this year for OSCAR BONAVENA.
“Still in a good place and Muscle Mountain the one to beat. Michael has MYSTIC MAX in but not sure a mile is his best go. ”
Mystic Max will head to Auckland for December trotting features but Oscar Bonavena is bypassing that trip.
“Looking to give him a little break and wait for the Slot Race in Cambridge in the autumn for next major assignment” Nathan said
PIC Where the Oaks began for the Purdon stables. Adore Me,first winner, 2013.Seven since