Race Images Palmerston North
Group One sprints will be the focus of Heroic Valour’s summer programme.
The son of Fastnet Rock has already tasted success at the top level having claimed the Sistema Stakes (1200m) during an unbeaten juvenile campaign and performed with credit during his three- year-old season.
The Stephen Autridge and Jamie Richards-trained Heroic Valour won the Listed Northland Breeders’ Stakes (1200m), ran third in the Gr.1 New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) and was fourth against the older horses in the Gr.1 NRM Sprint (1400m).
He then crossed the Tasman and finished runner-up in the Gr.3 Gold Coast Guineas (1200m) before he was spelled after an unplaced effort in the Listed Daybreak Lover Stakes (1200m).
“He’s coming up very well and he’s had a gallop at Taupo. At this stage, he’ll kick off in the Listed Legacy Lodge Sprint at Te Rapa on November 11 and then we’ll be looking at the Railway and the Telegraph.”
Whether Heroic Valour, who is likely to trial at Te Aroha on Thursday, is joined in the major short course events by his stablemate Splurge has yet to be determined.
“We’ll be finding out whether he’s a miler or just a sprinter,” Richards said.
Splurge has so far been most effective at 1200m with five of his seven wins at that distance, including the Gr.3 Darley Plate.
“He’s going along well and he also had a gallop at Taupo and he’ll probably run in the weight-for-age 1200m at Rotorua (the Gr.3 Jakkalberry Classic) on Saturday,” Richards said.
Splurge hasn’t raced since an unsuccessful two-start campaign at the Queensland winter carnival. NZ Racing Desk.