Terri Rae and Sir Albert’s day

Classy Savabeel gelding Sir Albert starred in the Listed Sothys Spring Classic (2000m) at Riccarton on Saturday, delivering another winning double for trainer Terri Rae.

Ridden by Leah Hemi, the six-year-old settled beautifully in fourth on the outside of Smooth Operator, tracking Riviera Rebel and Master Marko before making his move. Once Hemi pushed the button in the straight, Sir Albert surged clear to score by two lengths from the fast-finishing Cognito.

Bred by Waikato Stud, Sir Albert is by Savabeel and was retained in the ownership by principal Mark Chittick after being passed in during the 2020 National Weanling Sale on Gavelhouse Plus. From 25 career starts, he has now recorded eight wins and seven placings, banking $265,350 in prizemoney.

“He loves the 2000m as well as a mile when he is fresh,” Rae said. “We tried him past 2000m last season in the Dunedin Gold Cup (Listed, 2400m) and that was a mistake. He is not overly big and he just couldn’t cope.

“He is such an honest horse, a real character, and his record is very good. It was a good win today, he loves Riccarton and he beat a very nice field.

“We won’t do much with him now and he’ll go straight to the TAB Mile alongside Spot On Time.”