Local four-year-old gelding Blinkin Artie is aiming for his sixth win on Friday in the $32,000 MNCRA Awards Hopkins Livermore Cup after notching his maiden win at the two-day Taree Gold Cup Carnival last year.
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Trainer Ross Stitt remembers last year’s carnival fondly as his stable had wins not only with the gelding but also Syrah, Oh Not Again, Ultimate Decision and Bluemoon Dream.
The Hopkins Livermore Cup over 1400m has special meaning to Stitt as he was great friends with the late two stalwarts of country racing, Don Hopkins and Ivan Livermore.
He had great satisfaction training for Hopkins, a long-time president and board member of Taree Wingham Race Club and Racing NSW Country, one of his winners being Shoemaker which won the 2001 Taree Cup.
Stitt won the race in the honour of the two in 2015 with Shazza’s Bubbles and she was a close fifth the year later.
Blinkin Artie is owned by Errol French from Tamworth and a win would cheer him up as he has been battling cancer for two decades.
The gelding has been in good form of late, is ideally drawn, and gets Port Macquarie jockey Ben Looker to steer, he being the Mid North Coast Racing Association’s leading hoop last season and only on Saturday rode at Casino after being given a clearance by doctors after suffering concussion in a race fall at Grafton.
“He loves the track, the distance, and he has done well since his last start,” Stitt said of the galloper.
That was when Blinkin Artie ran second to Eight Below over 1515m in the Sawtell Cup late last month.
In 21 starts, Blinkin Artie has won five races, four of them at the Bushland Drive Racecourse, Taree, two of them at the distance.
Its win in the $40,000 Showcase Maiden last year was by two lengths and a win in the cup will take its prizemoney to nearly $110,000.
There are plenty of credentialed rivals, one of them being Port Macquarie seven-year-old mare Abohar, trained by Neil Godbolt, who also had a close affinity with Hopkins and Livermore, he being the exclusive trainer for the latter.
The Hopkins Livermore Cup over 1400m has special meaning to Stitt as he was great friends with the late two stalwarts of country racing, Don Hopkins and Ivan Livermore
Abohar is a newcomer to the stable and showed by its handy fourth to Lady Evelyn over 1600m in the Taree Cup Prelude that she is ready to strike.
She has won races at Ipswich, Sydney, Melbourne, Doomben and the Gold Coast in earning $171,000 prizemoney.
Taree five-year-old gelding Alot Like Home, trained by Steven Fell, scored solidly in
The Daniel Baker Sprint at Coffs Harbour after overcoming difficulties and has had five wins and six placings from 13 starts.
It is being touted for bigger races and only has to overcome its wide barrier to be in the mix.
Most adept at the distance is Warwick Farm seven-year-old gelding Carluca, trained by Jarrod Austin, which has five wins and 10 placings from 26 starts at the journey.
Its latest form reads well with a second at Warwick Farm over 1600m and a fourth over 1550m at Canterbury behind Gauguin on July 25.
Also in good form are Marathon, trained at Newcastle by Paul Perry, a good third last start here to Lady Evelyn and Wyong mare Profiler, trained by Jeff Englebrecht.
Doug Ryan’s selections:
Race 1: Tartufo Bianco 1, Think Free 2, Little Ebony Vega 3.
Race 2: Neptune 1, Subtle Grey 2, Eskimo Commander 3.
Race 3: Grand Soleil 1, Little Al 2, Shouldn’t Miss 3.
Race 4: Financial 1, Star Fest 2, Miss Zodiac 3.
Race 5: Bill ‘N’Ted 1,Akamin 2, Typhoon Bonny 3.
Race 6: Foxy’s Foxinator 1, Impulsive Maneuver 2, Allez Rev 3.
Race 7: Blinkin Artie 1, Abohar 2, Carluca 3.
Race 8: Sniponet 1, Saint Denis 2, Ambitious Prince 3.