Coming second doesn’t always sit well with trainer Chris Waller but he admits to being thrilled to see apprentice Rory Hutchings win the Group Two Missile Stakes.
New Zealand’s leading junior rider, Hutchings is spending the last part of his apprenticeship in Sydney with Waller.
He got the call-up to ride the Bjorn Baker-trained Burbero in Saturday’s Missile (1200m) when Brodie Loy was injured earlier in the week.
Burbero burst through late to beat the Waller-trained Weary.
“I was disappointed not win but if I had to be beaten I’m glad it was Rory who did it,” Waller said.
“It’s a big deal for him to get a Group Two weight-for-age win over here and it lets people see how good he is.
“Once he gets more opportunities I’m sure there is more in store.”
Hutchings is no stranger to top level racing at home and will be making trips across the Tasman when needed by his kiwi boss Graeme Rogerson to ride Soriano.
The two have already combined for two New Zealand Group One wins in the Zabeel Classic and the Herbie Dyke, both over 2000 metres.
The mare, who is entered for both the Cox Plate and Caulfield Cup, is scheduled to resume in Saturday’s Foxbridge Plate on her way to the Makfi Challenge.
“I will go back to ride Soriano in the big races,” Hutchings said.
Soriano, by the Rogerson-trained 2004 Cox Plate winner Savabeel, is out of Call Me Lily, a stakes performer Rogerson when he operated a Sydney stable.
