No grey areas here - Kozzi will jump and run on Volos who is happy and working a treat

Platinum Volos meets a few much better performed rivals in the greys’ race at New Plymouth on Saturday but is a sneaky place chance with his light weight and inside draw.

A rating 68 horse pitted against open sprinters like Von Tunzelman (r92) and Battle Time (r85), and up-and-comers like Lilly Thunder (r78) and Polly Grey (r77), Platinum Volos looks up against it on paper.

But while he has opened sixth favourite in the eight-horse field, trainer Lisa Latta still expects him to be very competitive from the inside gate with only 52.5kg on his back and talented apprentice Kozzi Asano doing the steering.

In his first ride on Platinum Volos two weeks ago at Awapuni, Asano bounced the horse out to lead and was collared only in the last 50 metres, finishing one and a half lengths third to Red Forest and Our Chloe.

He has another 100 metres to go on Saturday but will carry 2kg less and Latta says he will be ridden more positively than the last time he raced at New Plymouth when fourth in August.

“We took the speed out of him that day. He jumped well and we dropped him back but we won’t do that on Saturday. He’ll be right there which is the way to ride them on that track.”

Platinum Volos is a happy horse, says trainer Lisa Latta.Latta says she doesn’t know what’s caused it but Platinum Volos is in a much better space than he was a few months ago.

“He went through a stage where I thought he didn’t want to be there and when he was standing in the gates we were thinking the same thing.

“But he’s a happy horse at the moment and he’s working well and looking fantastic.”

Latta isn’t too worried about Platinum Volos racing in an open handicap - “he finished pretty close in that open sprint at Wanganui two starts back.”

Carrying 54kg, Platinum Volos ran fifth, 2.5 lengths from Brother One on a heavy 10 track.

“The heavier the better for him but I don’t think we’re going to get much more rain so it could end up in the slow range and being quite gluey.”

The New Plymouth track was rated a heavy 10 this morning and no more than 5ml of rain is predicted before raceday.