Horse racing: Trainer wise to Fernleigh Cash’s value from standing start

Trainer Steve Telfer takes two of his best pacers to Alexandra Park tonight but expects one of his other stable reps to beat them.

The reigning Premiership-winning trainer brings open class star Alta Wiseguy back to start his New Zealand Cup campaign in Race 7 tonight, in which he also lines up Kahlua Flybye and Fernleigh Cash.

While Alta Wiseguy and Kahlua Flybye are both Group 1 performers, Telfer says logic and fitness suggest Fernleigh Cash is the better bet.

“Alta Wiseguy is a class horse and one you can get ready enough to race at home but it is very, very hard to win these races fresh up off a 30-metre handicap,” he said.

“He is using this as his lead-up to the Spring Cup in three weeks and obviously has far bigger races after that all the way through to the New Zealand Cup, so we won’t be sending him on a mission from his back mark.

“He will be driven for one late run and if he is good enough to win great, but he can’t be at his peak.”

Kahlua Flybye is still a 3-year-old filly, albeit that is somewhat confused by the changing of official birthdates for harness horses. She is still very much a baby against the big boys.

“I wasn’t going to race her this week, but she has done so well since she last raced she needs another run to get her ready for the 3-year-old fillies races coming up,” Telfer said.

While Telfer is cautious about that pair he has no fears about Fernleigh Cash tonight, even off his 10m handicap.

“He is fit and racing well and since he ran second last time I have even stepped his work up a bit and he is ready to go.

“He is good from a standing start and he is ready to be driven aggressively.”

Fernleigh Cash beat most of those who stand in front of him on the front line the last time he ran second, and the rival who did beat him, Brookies Jaffa, is 10m worse off in the handicaps tonight.

Team Telfer also has a strong hand in tonight’s 2-year-old fillies pace, which sees that crop step up a level as the entire field from the Group 2 Delightful Lady Classic in March, won by Treacherous Love, return for new campaigns.

“It is a real meeting of the early season fillies and the ones we have been campaigning lately so it will be interesting to see how they all measure up against each other.”

Telfer rates Akatea (R6, No 8) the best of his three chances while the Barry Purdon/Scott Phelan stable has three smart fillies in with Ultimate Racy Girl just the best of their trio in a workout two weeks ago.

* The world’s richest harness race The Eureka will be run at Menangle, outside Sydney, on Saturday night, with Queensland pacer Leap To Fame the dominant favourite for the high-end slot race, which is only open to Australian-bred pacers.