Stakes performer Imwonderfultonight will head to Trentham with fresh legs on Saturday to tackle elite-level company for the first time in the Gr.1 JR & N Berkett Telegraph (1200m).
The five-year-old daughter of I Am Invincible has been a revelation for young trainer Sam Mynott, having won two of her four starts for the Waikato horsewoman, and was runner-up at her last start in the Listed Stewards Stakes (1200m) at Riccarton in November.
Earmarked for the Gr.1 Railway (1200m) at Pukekohe on New Year’s Day, those plans were foiled with a foot abscess and the decision was made to target the Wellington sprint feature instead.
“She missed the Railway, but she feels really good and she is going into Saturday with fresh legs, I am happy with that,” Mynott told TAB NZ.
“She had a tiny foot abscess, and it was just a bit niggly. We thought we might get her there (Railway) but Monday morning I wasn’t 100 percent happy with her so we decided to save her for another day.
“It was just a case of getting the blowout to come out, which happened last week. She has been happy, working well and the farrier is happy, and I am happy.”
Mynott admits to being slightly nervous heading into her first Group One as a trainer, but said she is treating it just like any other race.
“There have been plenty of sleepless nights and I have been pacing the box a little bit,” she said. “I am trying to not change anything. At the end of the day, it is a race and you can’t overdo it.
“It feels like there is a lot of pressure but Rod (Schick, co-owner) and Ben (Kwok, co-owner) have been super supportive. They supported my decision not to run in the Railway and come to the Telegraph instead.
“It is all systems go and we are doing everything to get her there in the best shape possible.
“I think she deserves her place in the field. Her runs at Riccarton were full of merit, she was probably a little unlucky on both of those days.
“The form around her is good, she can run the times and I think she can be competitive.
“She is a genuine mare inside and out. She has got a beautiful nature and she knows when it is race time. She can be a bit full of herself, but she hasn’t got a nasty bone in her body.
“I adore her, she is just a lovely mare.”
Imwonderfultonight is currently a $14 winning prospect with TAB bookmakers, with Dragon Leap heading the market at $3.