One More Moment the horse to beat

If last month’s Alexandra Park Group 1 harness racing form stacks up as it should at Cambridge on Friday night then One More Moment (Majestic Son) is the mare to beat in the $50,000 Dunstan Waikato Breeders Trot at Cambridge.

The race continues the new wave of support for trotting fillies and mares, coming off the back of the $100,000 Queen Of Diamonds at Alexandra Park last month.

One More Moment caused a huge upset winning that Group 1 for young trainer Zev Meredith but proved that was no fluke when finishing fourth in the far stronger National Trot on New Years Eve, beating by Muscle Mountain, Kyvalley Hotspur and Oscar Bonavena.

Any one of that trio would be backed as if unbeatable in tonight’s race and just as importantly rivals tonight American Muscle and Virginia Clowers finished behind One More Moment in that race off level marks yet have to concede her a start tonight.

“I was thrilled with her fourth in that race and it showed that she is up to the open class horses,” says Meredith, who will return to drive the mare himself tonight.

“She actually got held up a bit across the bend that night and was making ground on Oscar late, even if he did do a lot of work after his early break.

“I gave her a few days off after that and she has come back great. Her work five days was as good as she has ever worked.”

It is a big, even field tonight but One More Moment’s two efforts last month suggest she is the horse to beat albeit Meredith has one reservation.

“I don’t love the fact she is drawn one on the 20m mark because she could get locked away but with it being over 2700m even if she does there should be a gap later.

“So I think she has to be hard to beat.”

The favourite is Belle Neige, who also had a big December at The Park, winning twice including trotting a 1:56.6 mile to win her Golden Gait final and was even better downing stablemate Halberg over tonight’s 2700m distance last start in a slick 3:27.9.

If she repeats that sort of time tonight she will be hard in a race with plenty of depth.

The other best race of the night is the fourth heat of Provincial Pacers series (Race 7) which has plenty of gate speed and brings together recent winners from Alex Park, Cambridge and Manawatu.

For complete race entries, click here.

by Michael Guerin, for Harness Racing New Zealand