TAB Trot winner Just Believe extends New Zealand campaign
Just Believe won the inaugural TAB trot at Cambridge Raceway, which lifted him to second for prizemoney earnings by an Australian trotter.
Champion Aussie trotter Just Believe's huge week looks set to continue in Auckland on Friday night.
Earlier this week, Just Believe added to his already bulging CV by being crowned the 2023 Australian Trotter of the Year.
Jess Tubbs' gelding was second only to Queensland pacing sensation Leap To Fame in the overall Horse of the Year title.
Having just his second start in New Zealand, Just Believe will dominate betting from gate five in the Group 2 Lyell Creek Trot at Alexandra Park.
Last Friday week, Just Believe scored arguably the biggest and most important win of his career when he beat Australasia's top trotters in the inaugural $NZ600,000 TAB Trot at Cambridge.
It moved him to the second-richest Australasian trotter of all time, behind only the mighty Lyell Creek.
In a coup for NZ, connections revealed straight after the Cambridge win that the eight-year-old would have an extended campaign in NZ's North Island rather than return to Sweden for another tilt at the famous Elitlopp Trot in Stockholm next month.
Friday night's feature is a decided drop in class for Just Believe given the three Aussie stars who chased him home at Cambridge have all returned home.
But Just Believe will have to do something he has never done before to win, race in the opposition direction (clockwise).
"Greg (Sugars, driver) is confident he'll handle it, based on the way he works in that direction at home (in training)," Tubbs said.
"It's only a small field and we know the middle distance (2200m) really suits him.
"He's come through Cambridge really well and he's had a good week or so between runs."
Brilliant Kiwi trotter Oscar Bonavena looks the major threat from gate four.HE'S JUST A CHAMPION!
Our squaregaiting superstar Just Believe adds the inaugural TAB Trot @cambridgeracewy to his stunning list of victories by beating home fellow Victorians Callmethebreeze, Queen Elida and Arcee Phoenix in an absolute thriller! Bravo to @LarajayFarm! pic.twitter.com/1pIkH2wDeG
- The Trots (@TheTrotsComAu) April 12, 2024
Tubbs also has star pacer Better Eclipse in Alexandra Park's other feature on Friday night, the $NZ110,000 Group 1 Taylor Mile.
But the dual Group 1 winner, who ran a slashing fifth in the $NZ1m Race By Grins last Friday week at Cambridge, has drawn poorly yet again.'
"Luck has certainly deserted him," Tubbs said.
"He came here (NZ) for three runs last year and didn't draw well. He copped a bad draw at Cambridge last time and another one this week.
"It's going to be very tough from the draw over the short trip, but like Just Believe, he's been great since Cambridge.
"The upside is that it's a very strong back line, so hopefully one of the other good ones will drag us into the action."
Better Eclipse faces a huge task from outside the back row (gate 13) in the strong 1609m feature.
Fellow Aussie raider Speak The Truth drew better from two-out on the back row (gate 10).
Kiwi big guns Merlin (gate nine) and Don't Stop Dreaming (11) - who ran the quinella in the Race By Grins - will need luck from the back row.
The huge weekend for Tubbs and Sugars continues across Melton and Menangle on Saturday night.
Their classy mare Rakero Rebel will start from gate two in the $50,000 Robin Dundee Stakes where she will need to impress to qualify for Australia's top mares' race, the $200,000 Group 2 Queen Elizabeth II Mile a week later.
Rakero Rebel is one of four Victoria raiders in the Robin Dundee, the others are Emma Stewart and Clayton Tonkin's trio of Major Delight (gate eight), Treachery (nine) and Fiamma (11).
* Adam Hamilton is a paid contributor writing on harness racing for News Corp
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