Astute South Australian harness racing trainer Paul Cavallaro isn’t letting a sparkling run in a track-record trial tempt him into rushing a comeback from serious illness for his stable star Culture King.
The pacer returned to South Australia earlier this year after recovering from a life-threatening bout of enteritis, but Cavallaro is content to proceed slowly in getting him back to the track.
“He looks a million dollars and although he got narrowly beaten in his trial at Gawler on Sunday, he was terrific. But I’m a bit cautious with him because I just love him and want everything to be right,” Cavallaro said.
“We’ll trial him again this weekend and take it from there,” he said.
Culture King (Art Major – Tessace (Aces N Sevens) is a winner of 17 races from 37 starts and in excess of $92,000 in stakes. After winning 11 races for Cavallaro, the pacer was transferred to Craig Cross early in 2020 and campaigned successfully winning six races in New South Wales and Queensland. He was brought back south to Victoria to contest the rich VicBred Super Series, before becoming ill.
“The enteritis (infection of the stomach and intestine) was the reason he was scratched from the VicBred Super Series in December and he ended up having four or five days in the Goulburn Valley Equine Hospital,” Cavallaro said.
Culture King is raced by a 10-member Ready To Run Syndicate, which has members from Perth, Sydney, Victoria and South Australia. The entire was purchased from the Menangle Ready to Run Sale after Cavallaro felt there was “something special” about him.
Culture King and the Jonathan Kingston-Mayne-trained Captain Mannering went head-to-head in the weekend’s trial, with the winner stopping the clock at 1:56.3, and a last half of 56 seconds.
Cavallaro admitted the $60,000 South Australian Pacing Cup on April 17 was Culture King’s main mission – the race hasn’t been won by a local horse for more than 20 years.
But a border hop to Victoria for the $60,000 Mildura Pacing Cup Carnival (April 6 -10) also isn’t out of the question.
“After the trial I would say he’s close to the mark, but I just want to make sure I don’t flatten him,” Cavallaro said.
“We had his bloods done, and they’re all spot on, he’s put on all his weight again and super, but I’m just being very cautious.”
Culture King’s more than handy younger brother Artillery (a winner of six races from 10 starts) is also set to resume soon, after winning a trial in handy time at Gawler on Sunday.
“We’re aiming him for the South Australian Derby, but if we do go to Mildura, he would probably go over for the Mildura Guineas three-year-old race as well,” Cavallaro said.
Terry Gange
NewsAlert PR Mildura