Bonecrusher’s colours to the fore at Gore

If you thought there was something familiar about the colours worn by Worsethanted (Royal Aspirations) when he won at Gore yesterday, it’s because his colours are the same as the great galloper Bonecrusher.

Worsethanted’s part-owner Paul Hillis said, “At the time I was working at Simper Lodge (Riverton) and went for the white colours with emerald green sleeves and gold cap (those worn by his late uncle Bill Hillis), but I couldn’t get them. At the time Bonecrusher was racing and I stupidly put those colours in and they were accepted (chuckle).”

Since then the colours haven’t had little exposure. They were last worn by Up Yonder which Hillis trained to win at Ascot Park in December 1990.

Although Matt Saunders name is in the book as the horse’s trainer, he’s not claiming too much of the credit for yesterday’s win.

“Hilly (Paul Hillis) has done all the work. He broke his arm and Rabbit (Gary Argyle) arranged for the horse to come here,” Saunders said.

Yesterday was the five year old’s second start. His first was at Oamaru when he broke at the 700, finishing ninth.

“That was totally out of character,” said Saunders.

Yesterday from barrier one and in the hands of Brent Barclay he began like a pro and while others galloped in the testing conditions, Worsethanted didn’t put a foot wrong.

By the 400, he and Classic Skye had opened up a huge gap in the chasing bunch.

Halfway down the straight Classic Skye peeled off Worsethanted’s back but rolled into a gallop, leaving Worsethanted well clear and at the line he was eighteen and three quarter lengths in front of the second horse Wypout.

WORSETHANTED REPLAY

The five year old is raced by Hillis and Scott Mortimer.

“I’d like to give a lot of the credit to Brent Shirley and Tim White (farrier). I was doing all my work at Scott’s around the paddocks, but when it came to learning time, I did most of my groundwork at Brent’s,” Hillis said.

Worsethanted is the second foal out of Sporting Ella, an unraced Majestic Son mare. Her first foal Mad Jack has won five races.

Sporting Ella’s dam Pure Thrill is the dam of Moniburns which won seven for Kirstin Green and Tank Ellis. She was also raced by Hillis.

“She won her last three. I’m not one of those ones that go out and races just to go down the grades, so I retired her as a broodmare.”

Hillis says he’s known for a while that Worsethanted is a nice trotter but a number of setbacks have delayed his racing career.

“As a three year old I thought I had something real good, but since then he’s had stone bruises and last spring he got real crook, so he went out. About five weeks ago I broke my arm and had a compound fracture. Rabbit was the first to ring up and say ‘I’ll take your horses if you want.’ I said sweet, because he needed to carry on.”

The name Worsethanted stems from Scott’s late father Ted Mortimer.

“Scott’s my racing partner and a bit of a terror, worse than Ted, so Alan Sloan suggested the name Worsethanted would be a good name for a horse. So that’s how he got his name.”

For complete race results, click here.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink