Classy racemare Hayley Maree and talented jockey Daniel Bothamley make their returns to race day in race 3 at the Timaru meeting.
Hayley Maree has been away from the races since finishing fourth in the North Island Challenge Stakes at Trentham in May last year.
''She has been injury-prone. She has had quite a few setback,'' Tyler said.
The winner of five of her 14 starts and the horse Tyler rates as the best he has trained has a recent veterinary file that includes having bone chips removed from around a sesamoid bone and a suspensory ligament injury on top of fracturing her canon bone earlier in her career, he said.
Tyler is taking a wait-and-see approach with the mare's return to racing and is hopeful she can stay sound to have a shot at the Winter Cup at Riccarton next month.
Despite the horse being away from racing for so long, the mare is rated as the 11th favourite at $21 with the TAB bookmakers, the shortest of the five horses Tyler has nominated for the feature.
''I have got her in the Winter Cup, so all going well she will go there, but we have to get this week out of the way first.''
Hayley Maree has been handicapped with 63kg and will combine with Daniel Bothamley who rides at the races for the first time since January.
Bothamley, who has notched up 173 wins, took time out of the saddle as he battled weight issues over the summer racing period.
Bothamley works in Tyler's stable and the trainer reported the 32-year-old rider was eyeing a return to full-time riding.
''He is pretty close to making a comeback,'' Tyler said.
Tyler also has 2015 Winter Cup winner Timy Tyler, as well as Flying Sardine, What's Up Alf and Lochan Ora, who are all rated at odds of $41 or more, nominated for the Winter Cup.
Lochan Ora resumes from a break of more than three months away from the races in race 3 tomorrow, alongside Hayley Maree.
''He seems good. He is not in the same class as Hayley Maree but I can't fault him. He is working well.''
Tyler also lines up hurdlers Revenge and The Energizer in race 1 and Promising and Sir Jack Remmington in race 4 at tomorrow's meeting.
The trainer has his racing team located over the winter at Oamaru where he and his horses are not only enjoying their surrounds, but they are also finding good success.
''I love it. It's dry, the horses are in paddocks every day and there's no mud; it's going really well.''
Two horses particularly thriving at their temporary Oamaru base are All Black Magic and Belle Boy.
All Black Magic has strung two big wins together in his past two starts and will be aimed at the Oamaru meeting on July 21.
Tyler is having a hard time placing Belle Boy, who has also won his past two starts, over his favoured middle distance, so the galloper is likely to drop back to 1600m at the same meeting.
