Te Akau Racing's Gingernuts (NZ) (Iffraaj {GB}), on a four-race winning streak including a Mar. 18 2 1/2-length win in the G1 Rosehill Guineas over heavy going, is in great shape in advance of Saturday's G1 Australian Derby during the first day of The Championships at Royal Randwick Apr. 1. Trained by Stephen Autridge and Jamie Richards, the 2017 G1 New Zealand Derby hero acted over good ground in the Kiwi contest, but found the heavy going in his latest to his liking as well.
“Everything has gone according to plan and the horse is super,” Richards told racing.com of the $3.50 Derby favourite Tuesday. “He did a little bit of work on Saturday morning and this morning [Tuesday] he worked over 1200 metres on the course proper at Randwick with on of Gai Waterhouses's horses. It gave him a good look around and he did all that was expected of him. He's not a big, strapping colt who needs a lot of work–he's more of an athletic type.”
Saturday's 2400-metre race drew 13 horses, with Gingernuts breaking from stall 12. Rain is due Thursday.
Continued Richards, “The track on Saturday isn't going to worry us at all. They might think he goes better on soft ground here, but he can go on anything. I thought Jon Snow (NZ) (Iffraaj {GB}) was quite impressive last Saturday [in the G2 Tulloch S.] and he looks like he has improved and Prized Icon (Aus) (More Than Ready) also ran very well and he will go in a very fit horse. But our horse has been racing very well all the way through against good opposition and I couldn't be any happier with him.”
The Australian Derby is the last race of Gingernuts's campaign and he will board a plane for New Zealand Monday.
“He'll need a break and we'd like to set him for Melbourne in the spring,” concluded Richards.
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