Ignore the form line, Spirit Of God can answer punters’ prayers in Friday’s get-out stakes

Andre Poutama’s front-running skills should see Spirit Of God turn her form around in the final race at Cambridge on Friday night.

The 16-start maiden has had no luck in five starts since owner Dave Phillips gave the mare to Ray Green and Nathan Delany to train at Lincoln Farms.

But the Abkhazia-based Phillips remains hopeful the training duo can duplicate the incredible transformation they made with Spiritual Bliss, who in only 14 starts in green racked up five wins and three seconds, earning $67,920 before her sale to the United States.

Phillips recalls watching ‘God’ and ‘Bliss’ running on his Heartland farm at Pokeno as foals and thinking that on type and attitude ‘God’ rated a tad better.

The record books show he was wrong but Green says punters shouldn’t be fooled by Spirit Of God’s seemingly poor form line, which hides a multitude of bad luck.

• On May 15 at Auckland, the mare lost all chance when locking wheels 600 metres from home.
• On May 21 at Cambridge, she drew seven and was driven hard for the lead but came up short and had to settle for fourth.
• On June 5 at Cambridge, she lost all chance early when badly checked.
• On June 12 at Auckland, from gate eight, she spent petrol wide to find the death then the lead before weakening in a sharp 2:41.6 and
• On June 19 at Cambridge, she all but made the lead, but couldn’t quite cross before the bend and was forced to park out, locking wheels when beaten turning for home.

“She’s been very unlucky,” Green said. “You’d struggle to find a worse bunch than on Friday and, with a little luck, she’ll be a serious chance.”

The race is conditioned for non-winners who have won no more than $1250 in their last two starts and it includes only two horses who have run placings in their careers, King Of Memvis and The Miki Taker.

That’s a huge drop in class on the fields Spirit Of God has taken on in recent weeks and in engaging Poutama, Green has signalled his intention to lead with the mare.

“Andre is a very good driver and, as long as he doesn’t have to burn too hard to get to the top from six, she should be right in it. She has a bit of gate speed.”

Spirit Of God hails from a successful family, being a half sister to Spirit Of Love, the dam of Spirit Of Anarchy, who won his 11th race at Albion Park on Tuesday, and Spirit Downunder, who won his sixth race at Ashburton on May 31 and is closing in on $100,000 in earnings.

With the early scratching of Big Wheels, Spirit Of God is the fourth equal favourite at $6.50 and $2.10.