Perhaps Ultimate Machete has stepped up a gear this season, or perhaps More The Better was a run short.
More The Better did get the job done for supporters of last year’s 2yr-old male pacer of the year at the very skinny quote of $1.20, but driver and co-trainer Mark Purdon did pull the cord to remove the earplugs in the straight.
"The other horse kept closing and I knew he was the short-priced favourite, so I didn’t want to risk anything," Purdon said.
Alarm bells should not ring just yet. Firstly, More The Better did hold on by a neck over his All Stars stablemate, Ultimate Machete, in 2.04 for the 1700m.
And Purdon said an extra hitout at the trials might have been a help.
"He’s just had the one trial and ideally it would have been nice to give him two. So he came into tonight a little bit underdone."
Ultimate Machete has clearly come on from his 2yr-old season, and Purdon suggested the draw played a factor last night.
"If the draws had been the other way around, the result might have been different.’’Ultimate Machete’s driver-co-trainer, Natalie Rasmussen, could not have been happier.
"He did have to sit parked out and run a really quick quarter, but I thought he was excellent. That will be good for his fitness," she said.
More The Better might have a run at Ashburton before the sires’ stakes final on November 8, and Ultimate Machete might either line up in another heat or a race in the grades.
● Another early-season 3yr-old was in winning form yesterday when Motu Time To Shine won at her third start for Westwood Beach trainer Graeme Anderson.
There is not much to the Bettor’s Delight filly, but she can get her legs pacing pretty quickly.
"She’s just got better and better," Anderson said.
"She’s a high-speed little filly now with a great pedigree. So we’ll maybe just give her one more start then go for a spell."
The Anderson-trained Eamon Maguire remains unbeaten after three starts, but Anderson is happy to bypass the big races for now with the 3yr-old.
He will instead be aimed at the South of The Waitaki race on Show Day.
● The 3yr-old winning theme continued with Mustang GT, who belied his size with a comfortable 3 length win in a c0 2200m mobile pace.
Burnham trainer Jamie Gameson and his wife, Natalie, decided to hold on to the Bettor’s Delight colt rather than send him to the 2015 yearling sales.
"He was just a bit little and he would have got crucified at the sales," Jamie Gameson said.
Mustang GT is a half-brother to Mustang Mach, the winner of the 2011 McInerney Classic winner in Perth, and the 2012 New Zealand Messenger.
"They’re both the same — short guys with heaps of speed and a ton of guts.’’
● Fortune favoured Mosgiel trainer Darryn Simpson with trotter Montmorensy, who was not even supposed to be in Otago when his winter campaign ended in July.
"He was supposed to go home after his last start here but the truck driver forgot to take him," Simpson chuckled.
"We ended up keeping him here. He was always going to be better this year — he just came to the end of it last year. We’re pretty happy with him and he’s a good wee tradesman."
