Fully Funded
Trish Dunell
Progressive sprinter Fully Funded extended his burgeoning record of success at New Zealand racing's premier venue when he lumped a healthy 60 kilogram impost to victory in the opening event on Auckland Cup Day at Ellerslie on Saturday.
The four-year-old has finished out of the money just once in six starts at headquarters with the last three of his five career wins coming at the track where his co-owner, Peter Walker, is a board member of the Auckland Racing Club. Walker, who races Fully Funded with longtime friends and racing partners Sir Patrick Hogan and Alistair Sutherland, was briefly overcome with emotion after the victory.
"The lady who I bought him off, I brought up from the South Island to see the race so I'm a little bit emotional about it," he said after the race.
"He's a good horse but he's just got so much to learn. I put the blinkers on him to make him concentrate and they broke 1.10 so it's a pretty good gallop with 60kg on his back."
The victory took the gelding's stake earnings over the $100,000 mark with Walker confident there was more in store next season.
"Just wait until next year as he's a serious horse," he said.
"He fights on which he has shown right through. I don't know if he's a Railway horse but he certainly wouldn't be carrying that sort of weight and you just never know."
The win was the first of two on the day for leading rider Opie Bosson who was also successful on Postboy later on to take his season tally to 63 victories which places him fourth on the National Premiership ladder behind current leader Lisa Allpress. – NZ Racing Desk
The four-year-old has finished out of the money just once in six starts at headquarters with the last three of his five career wins coming at the track where his co-owner, Peter Walker, is a board member of the Auckland Racing Club. Walker, who races Fully Funded with longtime friends and racing partners Sir Patrick Hogan and Alistair Sutherland, was briefly overcome with emotion after the victory.
"The lady who I bought him off, I brought up from the South Island to see the race so I'm a little bit emotional about it," he said after the race.
"He's a good horse but he's just got so much to learn. I put the blinkers on him to make him concentrate and they broke 1.10 so it's a pretty good gallop with 60kg on his back."
The victory took the gelding's stake earnings over the $100,000 mark with Walker confident there was more in store next season.
"Just wait until next year as he's a serious horse," he said.
"He fights on which he has shown right through. I don't know if he's a Railway horse but he certainly wouldn't be carrying that sort of weight and you just never know."
The win was the first of two on the day for leading rider Opie Bosson who was also successful on Postboy later on to take his season tally to 63 victories which places him fourth on the National Premiership ladder behind current leader Lisa Allpress. – NZ Racing Desk