Man Of Action has gate speed but won’t try to cross the pole runner on Saturday night. PHOTO: Dan Costello.
Rain stalls Man Of Action again so Saturday night at Albion Park is a watch only race
By Barry Lichter • 9 April 2021
If you extrapolated Man Of Action’s 8765 form line, you’d think he might run fourth at Albion Park on Saturday night.
And if he manages that, trainer Al Barnes says he’ll be very happy as the horse is still not quite at peak fitness.
“He’s improving with every run but he’ll still need the hit-out as he missed fast work on Tuesday. It rained all day Monday and Tuesday - we must have had another 100ml.”
Barnes says whereas Man Of Action’s health was originally the hold-up - he failed to handle the very high temperatures - for the last two weeks it’s been rain which has been the problem.
“We’ve had a ridiculous amount of rain and our little 650 metre track got flooded.”
Barnes says once he can train and race Man Of Action consistently he’s sure he’ll recapture his form.
“I’ve found when we can train them over two strong trips on Tuesday and Thursday and race on the Saturday it’s enough to keep them fit.
On a rain drenched Redcliffe track, Man Of Action, outer, finishes on strongly for Hayden Barnes to feature in the minor money.“But Man Of Action didn’t quite run out his second 2400 metre trip on Thursday so he’ll be in need of the race. He won’t be any worse than last week but he won’t be any better.”
At Redcliffe last Thursday, on a very rain-affected track, Man Of Action settled three back in the running line but was last at the 400 then forced four and five wide round the home bend.
His finishing burst was the best in the field and even though he ran only fifth, 11.9 metres from Bettathanideal, his closing 800 and 400 splits of 57.62 and 29.06 were second only to the winner.
“He should land in a good position from two on Saturday night,” says Barnes. “He’ll hold his position out of the gate but he won’t be able to cross the one (Ifoundthebeach) so we’ll conserve his energy for the last 400 metres.”
Man Of Action races at 8.41pm NZ time at Albion Park on Saturday night.
More news in Harness
No Jumals to beat this time at the Park so Ray’s looking for Lincoln Wave to roll in
Lincoln Linda best of the night at Cambridge - she has the engine to cross Soul Artist
Cheapie Johnny Lincoln a “proper” racehorse who can foot it with the Million bluebloods
Bang! Lincoln Wave’s tyre blows out, startling rival drivers but Alabar win would shock more
Our runners this week: How our trainers rate them
Ray’s comments
Thursday night at Cambridge
Race 1: Rivergirl Bella
5.44pm
“She did well here last time as she had to do a bit to get to the lead and she dug in and fought on. She’s certainly a chance if she repeats that effort.”
Race 4: Lincoln Linda
7.09pm
“I thought she went super last time after doing a lot of work. She can do that because she has an engine and is tough. She’s a bit one-dimensional - you have to turn her loose early - but from the two draw she should be able to lead and that’s where she does her best work.”
Race 5: Sugar Ray Lincoln
7.34pm
“I think he’s a bit stronger after his spell. It’s not a great field - most will die on that mark - and I don’t see a problem with the standing start as he’s nicely gaited. He could be marginally unfit after three months out but he’s done quite a bit of work and I can see him going a half-decent race.”
Race 6: Lincoln Maree
7.59pm
“She had every chance last time but I can’t see why she won’t go well again. She’s as honest as they come and tries like hell.”
Race 7: The Night Fox
8.29pm
“You’d think he’d lead easily from the inside. He’s had bad draws and still got the money, so I’m sure he’ll go another good race. I’m surprised they sold him so cheaply. He’s better than people think.”
Ray’s comments
Friday night at Auckland
Race 1: Lincoln Wave
5.09pm
“With the trip he got in the Harness Million I thought he’d have run on a lot better. But he was still a bit short on fitness and sometimes we can expect too much of these horses, he was racing the best, after all. It’s a big drop in grade here and he’s a pretty fair horse.”
Race 1: Leo Lincoln
5.09pm
“He’s an honest sort who’s in a good space but he won’t get a wonderful trip from the outside of the gate this time so I’m not holding my breath.”
Race 3: Sammy Lincoln
6.04pm
“He’s training down well but you never know what he’s going to do. You think you’ve got him sorted and he does something silly. But we know if the real Sammy turned up, he’d be very hard to beat as he’s got a lot of speed.”
Race 5: Prince Lincoln
7.05pm
“He’s another where you don’t know which one will turn up but we’ve gelded him since his last run, so we’ll see if that helps. He trained well the other day.”
