Mark Purdon’s optimism that OSCAR BONAVENA may actually still be improving at a late stage of his career has a new follower-son Nathan.
Oscar Bonavena arrived Tuesday at Rolleston and Nathan cast an admiring eye over the star trotter.
“I can understand what Dad was saying now. He looks terrific but seems bigger over the shoulder and with more muscle than I’ve seen him with before.”
Even so Nathan expects Oscar Bonavena to improve on anything he does at Addington on Thursday.
“He’s off a back mark and that wouldn’t normally be a worry but he hasn’t hd the leadup in trials and races to expect him to be peaking. He will go a good race,always does, but will only improve.”
Mark will fly down on the day and be at Rolleston for the next week. WITHOUT YOU ($11) also arrived on Tuesday and has an awkward gate on the second row in a Sires Stakes heat.
“She will be taking her chance from that gate. There’s a big race next week (Harness Millions) and this race is really to tune her up for that. She is on the job but I don’t want her to have a gutbuster at this stage.She has travelled well.”
First up for the stable probably is MIDNIGHT MIKI -probably because he is the reserve in the Sires Stakes -and while he isnot considered a leading chance ($15) Nathan has come up with an unexpected factor in his favour.
“Yes it looked quite an ordinary run last time but he ractually ran the best 800 of the race, 54 and change so the ability is there. I wouldn’t make a big claim for him this week but like a lot of the Miki’s he is improving with age and he will be stronger later on. Not saying he can’t be in this though ”
RUBIRA is the $3.40 favourite in his Sires Stakes heat and also has the sort of draw dogging most of the stable runners this week.
“He is very well and up with the best of them but the gate is a worry. He also has a big one next week and I wouldn’t like to see him having to do too much work from there.Good enough to win but be better again.He is going well”
LOOK TO DA STARS ($5.50) trotted without a flaw leading all the way at Motukarara and at last Natham is talking of him in confident fashion. Fancy footwork has previously had the talented youngster in the “proceed with caution” category.
“Yes he seems to have got it together now. We were confident that he would but he let us down a few times along the way. That’s about the right price in a field like that and he has done well”
TREACHEROUS BABY ($2.20) is one of the few from the stable with a with an inside gate and Nathan is confident she will not be crossed from the gate.
“She will get out fast and I can’t see anything beating her for the early lead.She is well and our best. I think Bob Butt’s horse (Reklaw’s Dream $6.50) as the hardest to beat”
VESSEM is resuming after being scratched last time and Nathan has a word of warning because of it.
“He had a temperature and I held out to close to raceday in the hope it would settle but we had to treat it in the end. He has done some nice work in the meantime but he did miss four or five days so he will be a little below par and likely to go back from the gate because of that”