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Wednesday, July 16, 2025

Ari­ma Race Club

Gold Rush attempts to end drought

by

20140207

Gold Rush will make an­oth­er at­tempt to end the drought in ex­tend­ed sprints when rac­ing con­tin­ues to­mor­row at San­ta Rosa Park, Ari­ma.

The Ro­ma Sagan Maraj owned four-year-old will be in­volved in the third event of the sixth round of the Ari­ma Race Club's 2014 Sea­son.

Gold Rush trot­ted up by over nine lengths in the 1,350 me­tres Stud Farm As­so­ci­a­tion Breed­ers Stakes in his sec­ond ca­reer out­ing on New Year's Day last year when he raced in an ex­tend­ed sprint for the first time, but the John O'Brien trained chest­nut was un­able to get the job done in his five oth­er out­ings over ei­ther 1,300 or 1,350 me­tres last sea­son.

And it should be not­ed that Gold Rush was sent off as the favourite in the first four, be­fore be­ing in­stalled sec­ond fan­cy be­hind even­tu­al win­ner Chase The Drag­on on Box­ing Day, De­cem­ber 26.

Gold Rush's run­ning style sug­gests that he is best suit­ed to ex­tend­ed sprints, but he has sur­pris­ing­ly per­formed best over two turns and even out-and-out sprints.

At­tempt­ing a stay­ing dis­tance for the first time on Eman­ci­pa­tion Day, Au­gust 1, the son of Big Coun­try fin­ished third in the $500,000 Toy­ota Trinidad and To­ba­go Breed­ers Clas­sic (GR.IRT&T) over 1,800 me­tres odds of 14/1.

At the end of Oc­to­ber, Gold Rush placed sec­ond in the Chief Com­man­der Stakes over the same trip and at the same odds and a month lat­er he won a 1,750 me­tres con­test for 60-45 rat­ed hors­es by al­most nine lengths as the odds-on favourite.

He showed his lik­ing for an out-an-out sprint when he was sent over 1,100 me­tres next time out and won the Sug­ar Mike Stakes (GR.IIR) in the mid­dle of De­cem­ber.

Gold Rush will ac­tu­al­ly be com­pet­ing over 1,250 me­tres for the first time and it is de­bat­able whether this dis­tance is con­sid­ered a sprint or an ex­tend­ed sprint.

Among the six oth­er 70-55 rat­ed hors­es in­volved in the 1:48PM con­test are the De­r­ick Mosca trained pair of Swapped and Rhea's Toy Sol­dier as well as King of Siberia.

This Johnathan Ly­der trained five-year-old fin­ished two lengths ahead of the third placed GOLD RUSH over 1,300 me­tres when he went down by a whisker to Chase The Drag­on on Box­ing Day, and based on this per­for­mance, King Of Siberia, who scored on four times in sprints and ex­tend­ed sprints last year, could go very close.

The same could be said about Rhea's Toy Sol­dier, who has won twice and fin­ished sec­ond twice from six starts since he came over from his na­tive Ja­maica in the mid­dle of last year.

The grey colt is re­al­ly ver­sa­tile as his first vic­to­ry was achieved over 1,350 me­tres in ear­ly Sep­tem­ber, and af­ter fin­ish­ing run­ner-up over 1,200 and 1,100 me­tres, he pre­vailed in a 1,000 me­tres race two months ago when he last faced the starter.

Af­ter fail­ing to beat a horse in his first two starts in Trinidad, fel­low Ja­maican bred four-year-old Swapped fi­nal­ly showed what he is ca­pa­ble of by fin­ish­ing sec­ond to an­oth­er Ja­maican, Fire Light over 1,200 me­tres a month ago in his last out­ing.

It should be re­mem­bered that this Mer­lin Sam­lals­ingh owned geld­ing won a 1,400 me­tres event by over sev­en lengths at home in May and the run­ner-up, Per­fect Day, came to Trinidad and won her first two starts, in­clud­ing the Neal & Massy Oaks Stakes (GR.IRF) on In­de­pen­dence Day, Au­gust 31.

The field al­so in­cludes Touch D Road , but the 2011 NL­CB East­er Guineas (GR.IR) and Carib Brew­ery Mid­sum­mer Clas­sic (GR.IR) win­ner has strug­gled since he placed third in the NGC CNG Trinidad Der­by Stakes (GR.IR) that year.

In fact Mani­ram Ma­haraj's six-year-old has on­ly raced five times since that $500,000 event (con­test­ed on Eman­ci­pa­tion Day in 2011, and trailed a 15-horse field last time out af­ter fin­ish­ing sixth four times in a row.

Touch D Road has been miss­ing for over five months, but is com­ing down in class as he com­pet­ed against 85-65 op­po­si­tion in his last two starts.

The field al­so con­tains Un­du­la­tion, who prefers the turf but may still be able to find a place, and the out-of-form Of­fi­cer Ike.

This race will get the So­ca 6 go­ing and comes right af­ter the first of four HI-5 bet­ting events on the eight-race card.

Pun­ters will first at­tempt to se­lect the first five fin­ish­ers in the sec­ond event, a 1,500 me­tres race on the turf in­volv­ing 13 West In­di­an bred four-year-olds and over maid­ens at 1.10 pm.

There are al­so 13 in the field for the sec­ond HI-5 as the 45 & low­er rat­ed hors­es will do bat­tle over 1,050 me­tres at just be­fore 2.30 pm in the fourth race.

Twelve were de­clared in the sixth, a 1,350 me­tres con­test for 40 & low­er hors­es at 3.46 pm and the cur­tain will fall on the day's pro­gramme with an­oth­er HI-5 bet­ting race.

Sweet Ge­nius, run­ner-up in last year's Gle­nea­gle Stakes (GR.IIRF) and Neal & Massy Oaks Stakes (GR.IRF), is among 13 hors­es de­clared to com­pete over 1,750 me­tres in the event for 55-40 rat­ed hors­es at 5.05 pm.

Post time is 12.30 pm.

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