Lucrative Week For Smart NZB Standardbred Graduate

It’s been a lucrative seven days for NZB Standardbred graduate Mister Smartee (NZ) (Always B Miki), with the Gary Hall Snr-trained gelding scoring his second successive feature race at Gloucester Park last Friday.

The son of Always B Miki picked up the A$500,000 winner’s cheque in the Group One The Nullarbor (2536m) on ANZAC Day, and a week later he was back in the winner’s circle after taking out the Group One Freemantle Cup (2936m) at the Perth track.

From his inside draw on the second line, Mister Smartee was able to maintain his position from the mobile and was put to sleep in the trail by driver Gary Hall Jnr. The leading Western Australia reinsman woke his charge up at the 400m mark, extricating himself out of his pocket to get clear air three wide, and he was able to show his blistering turn of foot out wide to lead home a Kiwi-bred trifecta, with Minstrel (NZ) (Rocknroll Hanover) and Gee Heza Sport (NZ) (Sportswriter) filling the minor placings.

Hall Snr was all smiles after the race and said he was expecting to see a performance like that off the back of his work in the preceding week.

“The way he has been working this week, I reckon he was better than he was last week (ahead of the Nullarbor),” Hall Snr said. 

“We just knew off a cold sit like that, he would be electric and it would take a good horse to hold him out. I was just worried about him getting a run.

“It has worked out great.”

It was Hall Jnr’s tenth victory in the race, and he said Friday’s win is among his most memorable.

“Over that trip, I concentrated on relaxing my horse and planning in my head when I was going to make that move,” he said. “He is a really good horse, to do that at the end of 2900m off the last three-quarters like that and hit the line like he did, full credit to the horse.

“I have had a lot of good ones along the way, but he is definitely right up there. You can’t win these sorts of races without a good horse. You only have to look through the honour roll to see that.”

Mister Smartee was bred by Dancingonmoonlight Limited and he was offered through their 2021 New Zealand Bloodstock Standardbred National Yearling Sale draft at Christchurch where he was purchased by trainer Craig Edmonds for $32,500.

He had two starts in New Zealand as a two-year-old for Edmonds, finishing runner-up at Addington Raceway on debut before returning to the Christchurch track to post his maiden victory.

He was subsequently sold to clients of Hall Snr, and he has proven to be an astute purchase, going on to win a further 17 races, nine of those at Group level, including the Group One 4YO Golden Nugget (2536m), The Nullarbor, and Freemantle Cup.

Vendor	Dancingonmoonlight Ltd
Purchaser	Mr CD Edmonds
Owner(s)	S L Beven, D T Roberts, G L Moore, S W Waters, J R Fairweather, R Patriarca, F Patriarca, A Merrington
Breeding	Always B Miki - Luna Danza
Sale	2021 National Standardbred Yearling Sale, Christchurch ($32,500)
Breeder(s)	Dancingonmoonlight Ltd