Thee Auld Floozie beat her stablemate Seize The Moment and Hasselhoof in the Listed J. Swap Contractors 1400 with the trio all set for Group features in the coming weeks.
"I thought both of my horses ran out of their skins," trainer Stephen Marsh
said. "The Rich Hill Mile now looks a perfect race for Thee Auld Floozie."She settled three back on the fence under rider Danielle Johnson and, under a minimum of urging, she ambled to the front 300 metres from home and forged clear for the eighth win of her 25 start career.
"You really didn't want to be on anything else, she just jogged up to them," Marsh said.
Already a Group III winner, five year-old Mastercraftsman (IRE) mare Thee Auld Floozie was making her first appearance since she finished fifth in last month's Gr.2 Coupland's Bakeries Mile.
"The track was just a wee bit too firm for her down here," Marsh said.
Seize The Moment also found the Riccarton ground against him in the Coupland's, but his effort showed he was on target for the Wellington Cup meeting in January.
"He doesn't go right-handed, we'll be looking at the Anniversary Handicap and the Thorndon Mile for him," Marsh said.
Hasselhoof showed he was closing in on winning form with his late finish for third.
"He was vulnerable at the trip and he'll go to the Zabeel Classic next," said Chris Gibbs, who trains in partnership with Donna Logan.
Hasselhoof is also expected to improve with the outing after he missed a planned run in the Gr.1 Captain Cook Stakes with a foot problem.
"He shifted a plate and stood on it so he was a little bit lame, but you have to put a line through those things and move on," Gibbs said. – NZ Racing Desk.
