A hawk-eyed trainer, an unconventional mission to Gundagai and an aversion to whips.
Viva Las is not your average candidate for Saturday’s Group Two Villiers Stakes (1600m) at Warwick Farm.
Before entering the care of father and son trainers Neville and Christopher Voigt, Viva Las did her early racing for a couple of high-profile Sydney stables.
She showed good ability to win four races in town then, as mares can do, went off the boil.
Christopher Voigt knew the mare and liked her so he approached one of her owners, stated his case, and asked to train her.
“I’d actually been following the horse for a long while and I really wanted to get my hands on it earlier,” he said.
“I just thought, a mare in a big stable, she probably hasn’t been too happy.
“We’ve only got a little stable here and we can give her a bit of tender loving care.”
Viva Las arrived at the Voigts’ Randwick base in September and ran a couple of handy races without winning.
They took her to Gosford for the Belle Of The Turf Stakes and came away scratching their heads when she ran sixth.
“Tommy Berry rode her and said she gave him a kick like she was going to win it,” Voigt said.
“I went back over the tape.
“Then I rang a couple of the owners and explained why she didn’t go that well that day.
“When Tom Berry hit her with the whip she dug her toes in reluctantly.
“As you can see, at her last two starts this horse has not been hit with the whip and that’s been the key.”
Whip aversion identified, Viva Las made an unconventional detour along the road to the Villiers.
She went to Gundagai.
The goal was the $50,000 Snake Gully Cup and she came away with the spoils.
“The prizemoney was too good to knock back,” Voigt said.
Viva Las has raced once since then for a gallant third in the Festival Stakes, a more traditional Villiers lead-up.
She will be on trial at the trip on Saturday and jockey Daniel Ganderton will have to navigate a path from barrier 19.
But Voigt remains upbeat and is adamant Viva Las can give the Group Two race a shake.
“She’s been running out of her skin. I can’t get her any better,” he said.
“She’s probably come on a little bit again which she’ll have to in the Villiers from the outside barrier.
“She’ll roll forward and she’ll take some catching.
“They will want to be on their game.”
AAP TURF
