09/01/2013  Happy Valley  Race 8

SUPERNINSKY began very awkwardly and lost a considerable amount of ground. Before being allowed to race again, SUPERNINSKY will be required to perform satisfactorily in a stalls test. MASTER GUNNER was slow to begin. Shortly after the start, COMMON GOAL was bumped by ALL ROUND which shifted out. After the 800 Metres, LEO’S PRIDE was left racing wide and without cover. GOOD LUCK WIN shifted wider rounding the Home Turn. When questioned, C Y Ho (MASTER GUNNER) stated that passing the 1200 Metres he had obtained a position inside the favourite, MEDALLIST and racing behind JIMSON THE BEST. He said passing the 1100 Metres MEDALLIST shifted in, resulting in MASTER GUNNER racing tight to the inside of that horse. He said he niggled at MASTER GUNNER to prevent MEDALLIST from shifting in, however, MASTER GUNNER was reluctant to maintain its position. He said passing the 1000 Metres he again had to ride MASTER GUNNER along to continue to hold its position inside MEDALLIST, however, despite this, he was not able to maintain his position and MEDALLIST was able to shift in in front of MASTER GUNNER near the 900 Metres. When questioned, T Angland stated that he had been instructed to ride JIMSON THE BEST in a forward position and it was anticipated that the horse would race outside GOOD LUCK WIN. He said he rode his mount along from the barriers to take up a forward position, however, it soon became apparent to him that he would have to make considerable use of JIMSON THE BEST to take up the position as instructed, therefore he elected, after the 1600 Metres, to attempt to obtain a position with cover closer to the rail. He said near the 1200 Metres he was able to obtain a position behind ALL ROUND and for a short distance after this JIMSON THE BEST was awkwardly placed close to the heels of that horse. He said JIMSON THE BEST then travelled well. He added that passing the 500 Metres ALL ROUND was not taking him into the race as he had hoped, therefore he elected, approaching the 400 Metres, to shift to the outside of that horse and improve, however, JIMSON THE BEST quickly came under pressure and then was disappointed in its failure to respond to his riding in the Straight. He added that JIMSON THE BEST may not have backed up well after its last start when the horse had, in his opinion, a hard run in finishing 2nd. A veterinary inspection of JIMSON THE BEST after the race did not show any significant findings. MEDALLIST, ABSOLUTE FANTASY and GOOD LUCK WIN were sent for sampling.