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Intrigue Abounds In Support Races
06 February 2009
Pay Me Christian, pictured winning his 3YO Breeders Crown semi, returns to the track at Moonee Valley tomorrow night
Three Group 1 races will be run at Moonee Valley tomorrow night, but the two most intriguing runners of the night come up in a couple of the support races on the 10-event card.
Lance Justice will unveil his latest boom Kiwi import when Ohoka Utah steps out in the PETstock…Part Of Your Family 4YO Bonanza, while former Australasian record holder Pay Me Christian returns from injury in the Sky Channel Free-For-All.
Justice, a proven performer with Kiwi imports through the deeds of pacing stars Sokyola and Smoken Up and Australian trotting record holder Earl Of Mot, is supremely confident Ohoka Utah will measure up in Australia.
“He’s not as good as he can be at the moment, but he’s potentially one of the better horses I’ve had in a long time,” the Melton trainer-driver said. “Potentially, he could match it with the really good ones.”
“Whatever he does tomorrow night he will greatly improve on, that’s for sure, but hopefully his class will get him through.”
The Christian Cullen gelding brings ominous form into the $30,000 Group 3 event. He has won eight of his 20 starts, with a further seven minor placings, for $96,000 in stakes.
He will roll from barrier two for the 2100-metre mobile event at 6.31pm, in which he is the $2.50 TAB Sportsbet favourite ahead of in-form polemarker Captian Cullen ($3.50), Queensland Derby winner Standelle ($6) and Im Mark Antony ($8).
There is no such pressure for the Pay Me Christian camp with the former star youngster a $7 chance to make a winning return in his $25,000 event.
The entire, also a son of Christian Cullen, has been off the scene since resuming from an 11-month spell with a strong win over Blatant Lie at Moonee Valley in March last year.
That remains the only start the former Alabar Victoria Derby placegetter, who went a record 1:52.8 to win the 2006 Newcastle Mile, has had for father-son trainer-driver combination Graeme and Gavin Lang.
Favourite at $2.20 for the 2100m mobile FFA, to be run at 9pm, is last week’s PETstock Ballarat Cup hard-luck story Decorated Jasper, while Cincinnati Kid is hot on his heels at $3.

