3 minute read

Midweek racing in New South Wales took place at Canterbury, while in Victoria it was day two of the Warrnambool Carnival and we’ve got a horse to follow from each meeting.

Canterbury Race 6- Warrior Hero 

This looked one of the wins of the day at Canterbury from Warrior Hero, a three-year-old gelding by Snitzel and it appears as if the key to this horse is wet ground. He's now had six starts on rain affected ground for three wins and two seconds, and the form out of his heavy track runs is worth noting. He ran second on debut at Randwick-Kensington on heavy ground, beating home group two placed Port Louis before running second to listed winner and noted wet tracker Bacchanalia. This was his third attempt on heavy ground and the win was dominant from the front, beating a few handy types by good margins. No doubt Michael Freedman will be able to find plenty more wet tracks in New South Wales for Warrior Hero which should see him record more wins this time in.

Warrnambool Race 8- Showmanship 

One of the features of the Warrnambool Carnival is the listed Wangoom Handicap and given how long he'd had between runs, the horse to follow is Showmanship. Carrying 58kg on a heavy 10 track first up off an eight-month spell due to injury was never going to be easy and the market reflected that, drifting from as short as $3.30 earlier in the week to an official SP of $7.00. Despite the market wariness, the run was strong in defeat, picking his way through the field and actually taking the lead at the 200m mark before just peaking on his run late to run third behind two excellent wet trackers in Frankie Pinot and Inn Keeper. Prior to injury he was on a strong upward trajectory and an early favourite for the group one Rupert Clarke Stakes. If he can stay healthy heading into the Spring, there's no reason he can't deliver on his promise and be competitive in the group one handicaps.