The little brother of one a New Zealand Cup great scored a timely win as the lead-up to the million-dollar feature builds to a fever pitch.
Just one day short of eight years since Lazarus delivered his first devastating New Zealand Cup victory, Sinai Sermon produced a strong front-running win at Oamaru.
The younger of the two brothers is trained by David Mitchell, who races the 4yr-old with Donna Williamson and Gavin Chin.
Chin is co-breeder of two-time New Zealand Cup winner Lazarus and the owner of his dam, Bethany.
The Dunedin harness racing enthusiast was thrilled that Mitchell’s patience was rewarded when Sinai Sermon ran to an overdue win yesterday.
"The horse has had a few niggling injuries along the way, so he had a long spell and David has been patient with him," Chin said.
"He has taken a while to wake up to what racing is all about, but David thinks he is starting to click on to it now."
This spring Bethany has foaled another full brother to Lazarus.
The Bettor’s Delight foal and his dam are being cared for by Williamson at her Belmont Park Stud breeding operation in Canterbury.
Chin bred Lazarus with leading breeder Brian West and they sold the pacer at the national yearling sales.
Watching the horse go on to win two New Zealand Cups and become one of the country’s greatest pacers has given Chin memories he will cherish forever.
"He was a once-in-a-lifetime horse. You hope you can breed a horse as good as him, but you don’t expect it to ever happen."
When Chin owned Lazarus before his sale, he had good hopes for the young colt, but there were not many signs he was destined for greatness.
"He was slightly below average size, but just a well-put-together horse."
Australian star Leap To Fame will get the chance to add the New Zealand Cup to his glittering resume next week.
Also by Bettor’s Delight, the Queenslander is considered Australasia’s biggest star since Lazarus retired to stud.
Mitchell and driver Carter Dalgety doubled up later on the Oamaru card. After their win with Sinai Sermon, they combined to win with Deceptive Lee.
