Merv Butterworth greets Sharp ‘N’Smart after his courageous win in the Spring Champion Stakes.
Merv losing plenty of sleep over upcoming Victoria Derby - NZ Trotting Cup double
By Barry Lichter • 28 October 2022
Merv Butterworth admits he’s not sleeping the best.
Even for one of Australasia’s biggest racehorse owners, the stakes just got pretty big.
Never mind that Butterworth and his wife Meg have star pacer Copy That and crack trotter Sacred Mountain attempting to win from huge handicaps at Cambridge tonight. In the next 11 days they will have favourites running in two of the biggest races on the calendar in both the thoroughbred and harness codes.
Tomorrow, in the Butterworths’ home town of Melbourne, new-star-on-the-block Sharp ’N’ Smart will start top fancy at Flemington in the A$2 million Victoria Derby, the country’s most prized three-year-old crown that has been contested since 1855.
And just 10 days later they have current co-favourite Copy That attempting to win New Zealand’s most prestigeous harness race for Lincoln Farms, the $600,000 New Zealand Trotting Cup, for the second year on end.
“I doubt this double’s ever been done before,” says Butterworth. “The more you think about it, the more sleep you lose. And now it’s interrupting my days as well as the nights.”
Attending early morning trackwork at Flemington on Thursday did little to settle the nerves either, hearing champion jockey James McDonald climb off Sharp ’N’ Smart and say: ‘Wow, what a horse’.
The derby will be JMac’s first raceday spin on the horse but effervescent trainer Graeme Rogerson has filled him with plenty of confidence.
“Rogey says the horse is perfect and has improved from his last run. He reckons the only thing that could beat us is a super heavy track.”
Butterworth has enjoyed more than 1000 wins as an owner but none of them have had a bankroll of A$1.57 million after just seven starts, the A$2 million Spring Champion Stakes his latest scalp.
And to think he and Meg could have had a 25% share in the gelding, rather than 12.5% along with his five partners.
“I told Rogey, no, 12.5% was enough.”
Butterworth has said no to Rogey plenty of times since he met the man who could sell a smoke-blowing VW to an Arab oil sheikh.
“I was sitting in the lounge at Addington on Show Day in 2015 when I saw him sitting by himself. I’d never met him but I knew who he was and said: ’Oi, come and join us.
“I bought him a lemon, lime and bitters, we started talking, and …”
You know what’s coming next, Butterworth, flush from Arden Rooney’s win in the $765,000 New Zealand Trotting Cup three days earlier, was on Rogey’s owners’ list.
Not all the horses Butterworth said ‘yes’ to in the interim have hit the headlines but his interest was kept intact when flashy galloper Mascarpone took our the $220,000 Otaki Weight-For-Age Classic in February, only to go amiss.
Butterworth has the six inch high Maori carving trophy from the Otaki feature on his mantelpiece at home but is hoping to replace it with a more lavish one on Saturday.
Winning the derby would be some feat by the Redwood gelding who cost just $55,000 as a yearling and wasn’t wanted at the two-year-old ready-to-run sale, failing to reach his $90,000 reserve.
But Rogerson has won the derby before, in 2006 with Efficient who went on to win the Melbourne Cup the following year.
Sharp ‘N’ Smart races at 6.20pm NZ time at Flemington on Saturday.
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Ray’s comments
Friday night at Auckland
Race 1: Debbie Lincoln
5.26pm
“She had to sit parked most of the way last time but still went well, and that’s what she does. She’s proven to be a very promising filly and, while it’s hard these days to win without a good trip, it’s an even field and she’s a good chance again.”
Race 2: Lincoln Lou
5.55pm
“He probably cost himself a win last week by going roughly, but he can do that. If he’d got Frisco Bay’s trip he would have won with his closing quarters of 56 and 27 the fastest in the race. He’s just got to do things right to be the one to beat, even from the bad draw, as it’s an easier field.”
Race 5: Frisco Bay
7.30pm
“He’s up in grade a bit but I don’t think there’s anything between them. He’s just got to get the right run and, with his speed, he’ll be right in it.”
Race 6: Kevin Kline
7.59pm
“He’s no superstar but he’s very honest and he’s always a place chance as he’s a tough bugger, he sat parked last week.”
Race 6: Colonel Lincoln
7.59pm
“With a similar run to last week, he’d be right in it. He clocked 55.8 and 27.7, doing his best work at the finish. He hasn’t gone a bad race since he’s come back.”
Race 8: Prince Lincoln
8.59pm
“I wasn’t expecting him to do anything on debut as he’s a green, young horse. But he went very well so he’s obviously lifted his game for the occasion. And he’s trained on even better so the experience has enhanced him. From the inside he has to be a good chance.”
Race 8: Rivergirl Bella
8.59pm
“She’s definitely a better animal left-handed but she was passable right-handed and should go better this time. She’s got some speed.”
Race 8: Lincoln Downs
8.59pm
“She’s a nice filly but is behind the others. I don’t expect her to beat anything but she needs the experience.”
Race 8: Lincoln Linda
8.59pm
“There won’t be any shadows for her to jump this time so she has to be a serious chance. She’d been dominant at the workouts and trials before her debut but didn’t get the chance to show her true worth.”
Race 8: Lincoln Lover
8.59pm
“Fergie was quite impressed with him on debut and requested the drive again. He finished on strongly up the lane and should go well again. He just needs some luck from the outside of the gate.”
Mark Dux’s comments
Saturday night at Albion Park
Race 3: Argyle
9.04pm NZ time
“I thought his last two starts have been terrific. There’s no doubt this race is tougher, and he has trickier draw, but I was talking to Angus last night and he was quite upbeat about his chances. He said the horse gave him a good feel when he sat parked two starts back and he picked him too (in the draft). But it won’t be easy. There could be a bit of pressure early. I think he’ll come out and see what unfolds and, if there is too much pressure, he’ll drive him quietly.”
Ray’s comments
Sunday at Manawatu
Race 1: Onyx Shard
5.29pm
“You can put a line through her last run at Cambridge when she pulled up showing signs of a respiratory infection. She had a couple of weeks off after that and, while she hasn’t trialled since, she’s been training down nicely. She’s a nice filly and from the good draw should really win.”
Race 3: Lincoln La Moose
6.19pm
“He wasn’t far away in the amateur race at Auckland last time despite jumping a shadow early and galloping. This is a decent drop in class for him and he should be very competitive.
