Tim Butt is a man that knows how to train big race winners.
For over two decades he has made it his business to not only plunder the riches on offer in the Shaky Isles, he has also targeted the biggest races in Australia.
Now however, the tables have turned and the ex-Kiwi horseman now calls Sydney home.
It may not be as far to travel but the task is no easier as Let It Ride arrives at this year’s TAB Inter Dominion as, in many ways, the forgotten horse.
After a devastating win in the Blacks A Fake through the Queensland winter, he has been taken along slowly as an early season five-year-old.
“People maybe forget that a lot of the big guns either weren’t at their best or weren’t in the Blacks A Fake but I was really pleased with him obviously,” Butt said.
“He maybe can’t win this weekend from the draw but he should get a nice run and he’ll be finishing off well.”
While he hasn’t yet captured the heights of last campaign, which saw him run second in the Chariots Of Fire before claiming the final Grand Circuit race of the season, Butt has been happy with his progress.
“It’s very hard at Menangle when you’re drawing 10, so I’ve been happy with his three runs this time in,” he said.
“You don’t really know until you do it but I think he’s the kind of horse that will get through the series. It’s made easier if you get a couple of soft runs through the heats but he’s a good leader as well.”
Wilmas Mate has landed on Aussie shores for the first time since taking out the Victoria Trotters Derby and a Breeders Crown Final in 2016 and she’s heading to Butt’s Sydney base after ID18.
“I’m rapt to get her. I’ve only had her about 10 days but her last run was actually quite good and she just hadn’t been having much go her way in New Zealand.
“This series might come up a bit quick for her but she has drawn well for the first heat and after this I’m confident she’s going to do a really good job up at Menangle in the future.”
Blake Redden