Brilliant Ottley drive wins Tuapeka Cup

A tactically brilliant front running drive from Samantha Ottley saw Rocki Warrior win today’s Tuapeka Cup at Forbury Park.

Ottley rated the 7yr-old, trained by her mother Denise, to perfection in front by setting a pace that set the race’s backmarkers found too difficult to overcome.

“I though the only shot we were going to have to beat those nice ones off handicaps was to make them work and that is this horse’s go, too,’’ the driver said.

‘’He has got a bit of speed, but today I thought we might as well have a go if he steps.’’

After making a quick getaway, Ottley had to chance to put her pre-race plan in to place and even before entering the straight she got the feeling her tactics were going to pay off.

‘’I had a look around at the 400m and I saw there were a few gaps appearing and I just thought keep going boy and I put the acid on again and he didn’t let me down.’’

Ottley’s steadily increasing race temp made it especially hard for the favourite Eamon Maguire to work into the race off his 30m backmark.

The pacer worked into the race three wide before his run ended on the home turn, while second favourite The Manilpulator, who made an early mistake, was gone before him.

Third favourite Bite The Bullet emerged out of the one-one to briefly look a winning chance but the task of reeling in the pacemaking Rocki Warrior was too much for him, too.

Earlier today, dynamic trotter Dark Horse did not let a lack of match fitness, the testing nature of yesterday’s wet Forbury surface or her 60m handicap stop her from making a winning return to racing.

Not only did she shrug off everything that was against her, she cruised to the line with ease in an effort that impressed her trainer-driver Nathan Williamson.

 ‘’I'm wrapped with that.’’  

Williamson took a cautious approach leading into the race as he had been playing a waiting game between not wanting to step Dark Horse out until she was ready to race, while at the same time needing to have her ready and qualified for next month’s Dominion.

“I have just been waiting on her condition to come right and for her coat to bloom,’’ he said.

‘’The last ten days she has really picked up.’’

 

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