Quality New Zealand-bred four-year-old Our Crunch Time will attract considerable attention when he makes his Australian debut in the $21,000 Vale David Clement Pace over 2130m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Our Crunch Time will be having his first start for 20 weeks and he has not been produced at trials by his trainers Greg and Skye Bond. But his form in New Zealand suggests he will carry too many guns for his nine Australian-bred rivals.
He is favourably drawn at the No. 2 barrier and will be driven by Deni Roberts, with his main danger expected to be six-year-old Rockokoko, the solitary runner on the back line.
Rockokoko, trained and driven by Aiden de Campo, made an impressive return to racing after an 11-month absence last Friday night when he raced in the breeze before taking the lead 370m from home and scoring a comfortable victory over Oh Miki, rating 1.56.4 after final 400m sections of 28.1sec. and 28.7sec. in the 2130m event.
Our Crunch Time’s most recent appearance was at Addington on September 12 last year when he contested the $50,000 Woodlands Stud Sires Stakes over 1980m. He was the only runner on the back line, and he was sixth in the one-out, two-back position in the middle stages before he surged forward with a three-wide burst with 300m to travel. He got to the front 200m later before he wilted late and finished a close third behind outsider Berrettini, who rated 1.56.2.
At his previous start, also over 1980m at Addington on August 22, Our Crunch Time rated 1.56.8 in winning by a half-neck from the favourite C C Arden.
He was the smartest to begin from the No. 3 barrier and led for the first 500m before racing three back on the pegs and getting into the clear on the home turn and getting up in the final couple of strides to score narrowly.
Our Crunch Time also won at his first two appearances, scoring over 1980m at Addington in January last year and then winning over 2000m at Rangiora eight weeks later. His record now stands at seven starts for three wins and two thirds for earnings of $30,063.
Roberts also has sound prospects in the fifth event on Friday night, the $31,000 Nova Media Cup over 2130m in which she will drive Talks Up A Storm from the coveted No. 1 barrier.
She handled the Murray Lindau-trained eight-year-old for the first time (and at the gelding’s 96TH start) last Friday night when he was not bustled early from out wide at barrier seven, and was 11TH and last at the bell before running home solidly to finish fifth behind Fat Louie.
