‘Pipeopener’ for Placid Victor

Press, 24 January 1986, Page 23

‘Pipeopener’ for Placid Victor

Special correspondent Auckland The Tudor Hanover Stakes, an event for four-year-olds at the Bay of Plenty Trotting Club’s meeting at Cambridge this evening, should provide Placid Victor with a perfect “pipe-opener” for the Auckland Trotting Club’s cup meeting, which opens at Alexandra Park next Friday night.

The Pukekohe-trained entire has not had a race start since he scored an impressive all-the-way win at Alexandra Park on December 30, recording Imin 59.5 s for a mobile mile. Placid Victor’s success on that occasion was just five days after his crushing win in the TNT New Zealand Messenger, which he won in a race record 3min 23.2 s for the mobile 2700 m.

The trainer, Sandy Purdon, gave Placid Victor a brief let-up after the Christmas meeting at Alexandra Park and he is more than happy with the progress the horse has made over recent weeks.

“He had a few easy days since his last run,” said Purdon, “and I’m quite pleased with him at the moment.

"I haven’t given him any barrier practice at home but he will be able to follow the others out from the backmark.

“The run on Friday will be the barrier practice he will need for the first night at Auckland.”

Purdon was unable to see Placid Victor in winning form over the Christmas period because of a serious illness, but he is now well on the road to recovery and is looking forward to seeing the horse, in action tonight.

“I haven’t seen him run since December 14 (when he was an unlucky second to Gene Evander in the Thames Cup),” he said, "and I'm going to be there this time for sure.”

Luxury Liner had no luck on his trip to Hutt Park for the Wellington Cup. He was a fighting third on the first night of the meeting on January 11, after making the pace, and then broke badly at the start on the final night at his latest appearance and was eventually pulled up.

The Mercedes gelding is one of the up-and-coming young pacers in the north and is now just two wins from open company.

A better pointer to his chance this evening would be his gallant second to Placid Victor in the New Zealand Messenger on December 23.

Dolly’s Guy, from the in-form stable of Peter Wolfenden, has the ability to be prominent and he has won on the course over this distance before.

Parisian Dolly, fresh from an impressive double at the Waikato club’s meeting, could take advantage of a perfect barrier draw and win the second leg of the T.A.B. double, the Todd and Pollock Builders Mobile Pace.