A remarkable run for owner-breeders Humphrey and Fiona O’Leary kept on rolling at Trentham on Saturday with a last-to-first performance by Whangaehu in the Gr.3 Life Direct Trentham Stakes (2100m).
It was the second black-type success in the last three starts for Whangaehu, who won the Listed Wanganui Cup (2040m) on November 30 and then finished third in the Gr.3 Manawatu Cup (2300m) on December 21.
The red and white colours of the O’Learys have also been carried to victory in last month’s Gr.1 TAB Mufhasa Classic (1600m) by Ladies Man and Gr.3 J Swap Sprint (1400m) by Kelly Coe. Up-and-comer The Big Picture backed up those black-type headliners with an impressive undercard victory at Trentham last Saturday.
Despite his solid recent black-type form, Whangaehu was sent out as only a $12 chance in a Trentham Stakes market that was dominated by last-start Manawatu Cup winner Islington Lass. The Proisir gelding soon looked like even more of a longshot than that, being last to leave the starting gates and reluctant to hit out in the early stages of the race.
Opawa Jack and Drop Of Something sat in first and second throughout the race and were able to control the tempo, running slow sectionals and conserving plenty of energy for the home straight. The first five horses in the running were prominent all the way around the Trentham circuit and ended up finishing second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth. The only horse to make an impression from behind them was Whangaehu.
Rider Craig Grylls angled Whangaehu to the outside at the top of the straight and pushed the button. The six-year-old soon loomed on the outside of the leaders, but they showed no sign of slowing down.
It developed into an exciting head-bobbing battle to the finish between Whangaehu, Opawa Jack and Drop Of Something, and Whangaehu found that little bit more to snatch victory by a head. Opawa Jack edged out Drop Of Something by a nose for second, with another half a length back to the fourth-placed Times Ticking.
“The instructions were to try to be in the first three, but the horse was just so lethargic coming out of the gates,” Grylls said. “I gave him a slap on the shoulder and he didn’t respond. So that was just the hand that I was dealt.
“They didn’t go overly fast in front, so it was a really good effort to win from where he did. Once he changed legs in the home straight, his acceleration was phenomenal.
“The leaders put the hammer down and really got away on us coming up to the turn, so I wasn’t sure if we’d get them, but it was a top performance. He’s a horse that’s come through the grades and really shown his worth.”
Whangaehu has now had 32 starts for eight wins, eight placings and $368,835 in stakes.
The gelding began his career with a maiden win for trainer Bill Thurlow in early 2022, then relocated to Sydney and won twice from 18 starts for Chris Waller. Whangaehu returned to Thurlow’s in-form stable in the spring of 2023 and has added another five wins to his record since then.
“I was a bit worried at the start today,” Thurlow’s stable representative Sam O’Malley admitted. “We wanted to try to ride him the first three or four, but he was slow away and reluctant to hit out early. But he got the job done in the end.
“The leaders weren’t going that fast, but he got rolling into the race at the right time and I was confident once he loomed up alongside them.
“We’ll probably look to go to the Herbie Dyke Stakes (Gr.1, 2000m) next and have a crack at that.”
The Herbie Dyke Stakes will be run at Te Rapa on February 8. Whangaehu is now a $14 chance in a TAB fixed-odds market that is headed by Snazzytavi ($1.70), La Crique ($6), Orchestral ($6), and fellow O’Leary runner Ladies Man ($8).
