Ken Casellas | Photo: Hamilton Content Creators
Busselton trainer Barry Howlett was so impressed with the deeds of his brilliant trotter Sunnys Little Whiz seven and eight years ago that he purchased a close relation at a 2019 New Zealand weanling sale.
Howlett paid $8000 for the weanling who is now a five-year-old and is emerging as a square gaited superstar.
The gelding, who is by Canadian sire Majestic Son, races under the name of Our Maestoso, and he maintained his outstanding form with a splendid first-up victory in the $31,000 Pick Your Race Name Trotters Sprint over 1730m at Gloucester Park on Friday night.
Our Maestoso is closely related to Sunnys Little Whiz, who had 48 starts for 18 wins, 15 placings and $150,140. The highlight of his career was his victory in the Group 1 Trotters Cup in December 2016.
Now Howlett is setting Our Maestoso for the $50,000 Trotters Cup next Friday week. “I think Our Maestoso could even be better than Sunnys Little Whiz,” he said. “He should be unbeaten. His only defeats have been when he finished third behind Bromwich when he couldn’t get out until the race was all over, and when he pulled a shoe and galloped before finishing sixth.”
Our Maestoso has raced only 13 times for eleven wins and stakes of $70,080. He is the second foal out of Letz Hope, whose first foal Zigzagzoo has had 39 starts for six wins, 13 placings and $55,175.
Explaining why Our Maestoso has raced only 13 times, Howlett said: “He has just turned five, and there were no races here for two and three-year-olds. So, we had to put him in the paddock until he was four.
“He has been working good at home but is still very big (in condition) and he will improve heaps on that run. He won easily, with the ear plugs in.”
Our Maestoso was the $3.60 second fancy on Friday night when Chris Lewis got him away smartly from barrier four, while the polemarker and $3 favourite Patched galloped badly and settled down a distant last before making up a lot of ground to finish eighth in the field of twelve.
Our Maestoso rated 1.58.9 and beat $19 chance Evas Image, who put in a splendid performance to fight on doggedly after racing without cover all the way. Tricky Ric, racing first-up, was a $4 chance from the outside of the back line. He raced in the one-out, one-back position for much of the way and fought on gamely to finish third.