Te Aroha trainer Peter Lock has resisted the urge to send his topflight galloper Hiflyer (NZ) (Tavistock) to Hastings this weekend in favour of a Trentham test later this month.
The Gr.3 Red Badge Spring Sprint (1400m) was an enticing prospect, but the race had attracted a strong set of nominations and Lock has elected to head to the Gr.3 Thompson Handicap (1600m) with his pride and joy instead, a race the nine-year-old gelding won in 2017.
“I was going to look at running him on Saturday in the Group Three 1400m at Hastings but I am just a little bit worried that we will get a little bit of a classier field and they might go a bit too quick for him over 1400m,” Lock said.
“The only other real option for us is the Thompson in three weeks time. He likes Wellington and he has won the Thompson before. I think he is going to be hard to beat in a mile next start.”
The son of Tavistock made his raceday return in the Gr.2 Foxbridge Plate (1200m) at Te Rapa last month after more than two years on the sidelines as a result of a tendon injury.
He failed to beat a runner home in the classy line-up but showed signs of his past brilliance when running second over 1400m earlier this month at Te Aroha with a 59kg impost.
“He went absolutely super with a big weight on his back, there was a five-kilogram weight difference (with the rest of the field) and it was a huge effort for him to do what he did to race wide and he hit the line well,” Lock said.
“We have had him scanned and everything has come back clear. We are over the moon with him.
“He has pulled up 100 percent sound and we are really happy with him. He has improved out of sight.”
While Hiflyer’s return has been a boost for Lock, it has also been a tonic for co-breeder and part-owner Sir Patrick Hogan as well as Lock’s local town of Te Aroha.
“Everybody in Te Aroha puts $1 each way on him. They all follow him and it is great for the town,” Lock said.
“It’s great for Patrick too, he was over the moon after the race. He watched him in the birdcage and thought he looked outstanding, so it’s pleasing all around.”
Prior to his two-year hiatus, Hiflyer had won nine of his 29 starts, including the Thompson Handicap, Gr.3 Eagle Technology Stakes (1600m), and placed in the Gr.1 Thorndon Mile (1600m), Gr.1 Tarzino Trophy (1400m), Gr.2 Easter Stakes (1600m).
