Sewreel provides further ammunition for Oaks assault

Already brandishing considerable firepower for their attempt on the Gr. 1 Wellfield New Zealand Oaks in a month’s time, the powerful Murray Baker & Andrew Forsman stable added a third string to their bow when Sewreel dominated her opposition to secure Saturday’s Listed Bob Sharrock Memorial Oaks Trial at New Plymouth.

The sleek Savabeel filly finished powerfully from a midfield position to draw away from her opposition in the closing stages and add her name alongside Mime and Coldplay as Oaks contenders from the country’s leading stable.

Watching intently from Ellerslie was the combination’s senior partner, Baker, who was quietly satisfied with the performance.

“She is a very promising filly who has now won three of her six starts,” he noted.

“We’ve thought she might be an Oaks type for quite awhile now and that performance confirmed that for us.”

Baker revealed the key to the filly’s progress was a gear change made after she finished well back in the Gr. 2 Eight Carat Classic on Boxing Day.

“We took the blinkers off after that run at Ellerslie and that seems to have settled her down nicely,” he said.

“She is relaxing far better in her races now as she showed on Saturday when she settled nicely in the early part of the race.

“She will have one more run before the Oaks but I’m not quite sure where that will be at this stage.”

Baker was also pleased with the run of his main BMW New Zealand Derby contender Get That Jive who dead-heated for third in Saturday’s Gr. 2 Avondale Guineas.

“I thought he fought on nicely and wasn’t too far away at the finish,” he said.

“He was impeded a little by his stablemate on the corner so all in all it was a good effort.”

Get That Jive is currently the $6 second favourite on the TAB’s Fixed Odds market for the Derby with his conqueror on Saturday, Rangipo, the new $5 favourite for the Group One feature run at Ellerslie on the 5th of March. – NZ Racing Desk