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Matamata trainer Jason Bridgman's chances of embellishing Te Akau Racing's proud Guineas record at Riccarton next month will become clearer in the coming weeks.
Te Akau has won either the 1000 or 2000 Guineas at Riccarton seven times in the past 10 years and has six three-year-olds still in contention - fillies Darci's Dream, Flaming, No Tricks and Vive La Difference and male gallopers Rockfast and Prince Henry.
A winner of his only start to date at Taupo last month, Prince Henry will be out to convince Bridgman he is worthy of a trip south when he contests Saturday's Waharoa Livestock 1200 at Matamata."He's still got to progress to get to Riccarton. He is up against winners this time so we'll get a good line on him," Bridgman said.
"He's still quite a raw horse so that's why we are going 1200m again and he'll need to win this and take the next step at 1400m if we were going to look at the Guineas with him."Rockfast finished sixth in last Saturday's Gr.2 Hawke's Bay Guineas (1400m) at Hastings, while Vive La Difference was eighth in the special conditions maiden on the same programme.
"We'll just see how they both come through their runs before deciding what's next. Being their first runs on top of the ground, they've taken a couple of days to get over their races and they might both now be looking for a mile," Bridgman said.Savabeel filly No Tricks boosted her stocks for the Gr.1 $300,000 New Zealand Bloodstock 42nd 1000 Guineas (1600m) on November 15 with a comprehensive 3 1/2-length maiden win at Taupo on Wednesday.
She is not entered for the Gr.1 $400,000 Sothys 42nd New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m) on November 8, though Darci's Dream, Flaming and Vive La Difference all are.Last-start Gr.3 Gold Trail Stakes runner-up Flaming has headed south in preparation for Saturday week's Listed $50,000 Ray Coupland Stakes (1400m) at Ashburton in which she will face Darci's Dream, who followed a first-up Taupo win with success in the Listed Canterbury Belle Stakes at Riccarton last month.