Kembla preview: Mark Minervini hoping Tommy Berry stays unbeaten on Go Gazza

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Vormista’s trainer Mark Minervini is hoping champion jockey Tommy Berry can maintain his unbeaten record on the Kembla-bound Adelaide Yearling purchase Go Gazza on Thursday.

Having identified the perfect race for the son of Foxwedge, Minervini’s next assignment was to find the perfect jockey.

“Paul Joice is now managing Tommy Berry and I actually texted Paul a couple of weeks ago because I had this race picked out for Go Gazza,” Minervini explained.

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“Paul said ‘leave it with me’ and he came back to me pretty quickly and said ‘yep, that’ll be no problem’.

“The horse has only won two races and Tommy has ridden him both times so he is going for three out of three on him and hopefully he can get the job done.”

Coincidentally, Berry’s first win on Go Gazza came almost a year to the day in a Wyong Maiden on July 20 which horse and rider followed up a mere nine days later in a Benchmark 58 at the same venue.

Go Gazza, a $45,000 Magic Millions Yearling purchase in Adelaide, sent out all the right signs that a third career win was close at hand when an unlucky first-up fourth at Newcastle in a deep Benchmark 58 Handicap behind Alinghi’s great-grandson, Rocstar Boy.

“I reckon if he didn’t win, he was going to run second. He ran up backsides pretty much the whole straight,” Minervini said.

“He has drawn a little bit wide on Thursday but most of them will be getting to the outside you would think, particularly later in the day for sure.”

Minervini’s other runner at Kembla Grange is Super, a borderline ‘duffer’ despite being a son of noted wet-track racehorse and sire, Snitzel.

“Super is probably not that effective on wet tracks but he needs to have a run,” Minervini said.

“Even if I wait another week, it is probably still going to be heavy anyway so he’ll run.

“It seems stupid but now that he has got a bit older, I think he is probably more tractable and he has had a few feet issues, so I think the (wet) track might even work in his favour.

“With 57.5kg, I thought he got in pretty well because he is probably the best horse in the race. On his best form, he would brain them, but he has been off the scene for a while and is more effective on a firmer track but outside of that, I give a fairly good chance.”

Super will be ridden by promising apprentice Madeline Owen whose booking is testament to the adage that hard work has its rewards.

“Madeleine has been a superstar for me in that she has ridden a lot of work for me recently, a lot of key gallops, and her feedback has been very positive,” said Minervini.

“So I just wanted to reward her with a good ride and she is pretty excited and the owners are happy to have her on.

“I hope Super runs well for her because she can stick with him during the prep.”

GRAFTON PREVIEW: ROSE TO BLOSSOM WITH AN OVERDUE VICTORY

Regally-bred Ballina mare Rose Bouquet is ready to post a well-earned, if not overdue, first Grafton win on Thursday.

The Daniel Bowen-trained mare has won at Casino and Lismore but so far hasn’t been able to crack it for a win at Grafton in her seven visits to the venue.

That said, the daughter of Up And Coming Stakes winner, War, has four seconds a third at Grafton and went as close as she ever has to a breakthrough there 16-days ago when a brave and narrow second.

“The horse that won the race went past her but she came again on the line which was really promising,” Bowen said.

“It is a bigger field this time and she has drawn a little bit awkward but if she can be third or fourth, or outside the leader at best, she is going to be hard to beat.

“I think she can win and she should go on this prep. I think she can take the next step.

“If she can win there on Thursday, once she gets up to 1400m and a mile and can get to the front, she can rise through the grades.”

Rose Bouquet will at least have no rival for the best bred and most valuable thoroughbred racing at Grafton on Thursday given her epic pedigree.

Bowen’s mare’s grand-dam is Rose Of Portland, a Group 3 winner and a Seattle Slew half-sister to Secretariat’s Melbourne Cup winning son, Kingston Rule.

Rose Bouquet’s third-dam is none other than Rose Of Kingston whose trio of Group 1 majors include the 1982 AJC Derby.

Bowen, meanwhile, is represented by another well-related filly at Grafton on Thursday namely Palawa Kani who lines-up in the XXX Gold Handicap over 1025m.

“I think she is a deadset 1000m horse,” Bowen said.

“Her last start was over 1100m and she drew near enough the outside, worked across and led, kicked, but faded over the last 100m.

“On Thursday, she is weighted to win and is going to get a nice run in the race and I think she is a better horse when she can get cover.”



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