Platinum Attack’s big chance - down in class and back to his favourite Trentham track

With a big drop in class and racing on a track where he runs his best races, you’d expect co-owner Neville McAlister to be reasonably bullish about Platinum Attack’s chances in Saturday’s $130,000 Lightning Handicap at Trentham.

But while punters have launched into the horse, his opening odds of $7 caving in to $4.50, McAlister is more cautious in his assessment, pointing to Platinum Attack’s one-dimensional style which has hampered his performances this season.

“It’s all a time thing with him,” said McAlister who races the horse with Lincoln Farms’ John and Lynne Street.

“He needs the pace to be on, and to be tucked away with cover, and then he can get home. But if things don’t go his way, and the speed goes out of the race, he can’t win.”

The key to Saturday’s race, says McAlister, is whether the tempo remains hot, and with go-forward horses like Poetic Champion, Miss Jones and Party Rocking in the field that’s a possibility.

But if the pace slows up front, and Platinum Attack starts to pull, like in his last start in the King’s Plate at Ellerslie, we won’t see the best of him. Horses back in the field quite simply won’t be able to make up the ground when the final sprint goes on.

While Platinum Attack has performed with credit against the very best sprinters in the land in his last four starts, mostly from bad barriers, running sixth in the Telegraph, fifth in the Railway, sixth in the BCD Sprint and third in the King’s Plate, McAlister says he feels it has been a disappointing season.

“We thought he was up to the Group I sprinters and that as a five-year-old he’d really ping this season, but you’d have to question it now. He’s won one Listed race against average horses.

“Because he’s such a hard horse to ride he doesn’t win very often. He’s very one-dimensional, not like the real good horses who can overcome things like tempo.”

Platinum Attack has worn noise-dampening ear covers around to the barriers for the last two years but McAlister and trainer Lisa Latta experimented with leaving them on for the BCD Sprint at Te Rapa two starts back when Platinum Attack was three wide with no cover throughout.

“We wanted to see if they’d help him get 1400 metres, and it worked quite well, so we left them on last time but they went so slow, he pulled his block off.”

But it will be back to the tried and true on Saturday when Platinum Attack returns to Trentham, where he was beaten a nose in the Lightning last year.

Platinum Attack’s two best wins were also on the big, roomy track:

• In March, 2024, he clocked 55.27 over 1000 metres and
• In December the same year, with the right pace on, he ran 1200 metres in a sizzling 1:07.3.

Platinum Attack’s new jockey Bruno Queiroz lies third on the premiership with 58 winners.Latta expects the horse to be right in the thick of it again on Saturday, in the hands of the in-form Bruno Queiroz and on his favoured good footing.

“He gets in with 56.5kg, this is a drop back in class for him, and his work on Tuesday morning was good.”

Paired with Knickerless on the course proper, Platinum Attack galloped 1000 metres in 1:05.9, the last 600 in 37.1.

Latta believes topweight Navigator ($8) is the benchmark horse in the race and is the one to beat.

Bogged down in heavy footing last time at Matamata, Navigator previously ran two excellent seconds at Trentham, chasing home First Five in the Telegraph, when on equal weights of 58.5kg.

“We have 2.5kg on him this time which is certainly a bonus.”

Latta is also wary of Poetic Champion who has been back in from $4.60 to be the $3.20 favourite.

“He looks to be a progressive horse,” Latta said.

But Poetic Champion, winner of four of his five fresh-up runs, including at Matamata on February 28, has yet to win second-up in his 12-start career.