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Richard French has unfinished business with Marotiri Miss this preparation and he is hoping the job can be finalised in double quick time.
The Foxton-based horseman’s goal is a stakes victory with the mare before the curtain comes down on her racing days.
“That’s the target for her future career as a broodmare and she’s most likely to go to Shocking in the spring,” French said.“After she won her first start I said she was the best horse I’ve ever had and she’s never let me down. Every time she goes out she puts in 110 percent.”
With that black type goal in mind, Marotiri Miss will back up in this weekend’s Listed Ag Challenge Stakes at Wanganui following her success in last Saturday’s North Island Challenge Stakes at Trentham.“She pulled up brilliantly and I’m also toying with the idea of going to Christchurch again,” French said.
Marotiri Miss finished runner-up to Karla Bruni at Riccarton in last year’s Gr.3 Winter Cup over a mile and she will also be given the opportunity this campaign to prove herself over more ground.“I want to get her up to 2000 metres and I’ll be looking for an open handicap somewhere, she jumps out and relaxes well so I think she will cope quite well,” French said.
The Al Akbar mare is the only horse he currently has in training with a half-sister to Marotiri Miss by Fully Fledged and a Lucky Unicorn filly to shortly come into work.French, 38, served his riding apprenticeship with Kevin Gray at Waverley and he has continued his association with the now Palmerston North-based trainer as his stable foreman for the past 18 months.