Two weeks after finishing second to Sumi (NZ) (Atlante) at the previous Te Rapa meeting, Freeze Frame (NZ) (Vadamos) reversed that result in Saturday’s rematch with the talented Taranaki raider.
The Hutton Contracting (1400m) was the second clash this month for the pair, who had finished first and second over the same course and distance on April 14. Sumi beat Freeze Frame by half a length that day, with the remainder of the field another four lengths away.
Sumi’s weight increased from 54.5kg to 56kg for Saturday’s rematch, with Freeze Frame rising only slightly from 54kg to 54.5kg. That swing in the weights, combined with a well-timed ride from Warren Kennedy and a potent finishing burst down the Te Rapa straight, propelled Freeze Frame to an emphatic win.
Sumi took up a handy position in third through the early stages of the $40,000 race, keeping a close watch on the front-running Fonteyn. Freeze Frame settled much further back in eighth, more than half a dozen lengths behind the leader.
Freeze Frame was badly blocked behind a wall of horses early in the home straight, but Kennedy eventually spotted an opening and launched his run. Freeze Frame charged home with a push-button sprint, joining Karman Line and Sumi in the final 50m and catching them right on the finish line. He beat Karman Line by a head, with Sumi another nose away in third.
“That swing in the weights made a difference today,” Te Akau Racing’s racing manager Reece Trumper said. “It was a good ride by Warren. He’s a horse that you can’t bustle early – he needs time to get into his rhythm and get breathing. Fortunately he got the gap at the right time today and was good enough to get through it.”
Freeze Frame was bought for $80,000 by David Ellis from the yearling draft of Rich Hill Stud at Karaka in 2021. The Vadamos gelding has now had 18 starts for five wins, nine placings and $145,910 in stakes.
The four-year-old has a particular affinity for 1400m, where his nine starts have produced two wins and six placings, while his seven appearances at Te Rapa have yielded two wins and three placings.
“He might not be ideally suited to open handicaps just yet, but the way he’s placed at the weights in Rating 75 company meant we had to run him in this open race today,” Trumper said. “He’s certainly going to continue to get better with time, and I think he’ll get up over more ground too.”
