Lazarus has won the Woodlands New Zealand harness racing "Free For All" in dominating fashion.
He had to be the best horse to win, sitting parked on a frantic pace, but his toughness got him home in the end.
"He was just coasting the last bit. It was another scintillating performance" Mark said after Lazarus won in national record time (2.16.3) MR 1-52.4 his second record in a week on Friday.
"He wasn't bothered by the Cup run so you had to be confident but he did it so easy in the finish"
Now we have to decide what to do next. He has to have a break some time. We had the Auckland Cup in the plan but I will see how he comes through this before we make any final decision. If he does go there the rest of his racing will be in Australia, probably starting in Melbourne."
Mark was confident enough not to spend petrol winning the lead from Christen Me when Dexter was clearly in no mood to give it up, taking hold of the odds on fave quickly. The ability of Lazarus to relax in such a situation is a key to his winning streak and has been such a notable part of the stock of Bettor's Delight.
The national record is still a national record though it is not as notable as some. The Free for All was traditionally 2000m then tried at a mile for a few years before setting on 1950m at which distance it has only been run twice. But dual shareholders Phil and Glenys Kennard and Kevin and Carol Riseley would not have been upset that one of their horses took another -Ultimate Machete- out of the all comer record books.
Natalie was enthusiastic about the run of Dream About Me even though she had to settle for 6th.
"I was really happy with her. The draw was always a problem and when we ended up on the back of Locharburn and he couldn't carry us into the race she lost any chance she had. But she responded well. I thought it was a top run"
Often asked to rate his champions and more often reluctant to do so, Mark has always had a soft spot for the sheer brilliance of Auckland Reactor but even that must be wilting in the face of these amazing efforts of Lazarus.
Harnesslink Media
Courtesy of Allstars Website
