O’Reilly 3YO Tops In Gr 2 Guineas

O’Reilly’s progressive son President Lincoln made the impressive jump out of maiden company to claim today’s Gr 2 New Zealand Bloodstock Wellington Guineas and might be aimed even higher next month. Awapuni trainer Lisa Latta is giving serious thought to raising the bar to Gr 1 level with the three-year-old if conditions suit.

“He’s a big, strong boy and he is nominated for the Levin Classic but I’ll just be keeping an eye on the tracks,” Latta said. “It was an after-thought really and he likes wet tracks and doesn’t pull so we put in the late nomination (for Wellington).”

President Lincoln settled off the pace on Saturday but when rider Kelly Myers pushed the button the gelding surged to the front and raced clear to score by two and a-half lengths. “It was a super effort from him and it was pretty easy in the end,” she said. “I was a little bit worried and thought his greeness might be his undoing with the step from 1200 to 1500 metres but he did it like he’s been doing it all his life,” Myers said.

President Lincoln is raced by John and Linda Street under their Lincoln Farm banner and they bred the three-year-old who is out of the winning Pentire mare Pinot Gris. She is a daughter of the outstanding mare Covered N’ Grey who was the winner of no less than 24 races and twice landed the Gr 2 Travis Stakes and earned multiple Gr 1 placings.