October 9, 2025

Stablemates Diaz and Contarelli put up notable workouts ahead of their Oct 12 runs

When you are at the Selangor Turf Club cheering on the horses on the afternoon of Oct 12, save some voice for later in the day as there could be a couple of runners worthy of applause.

There is Diaz in the ninth event and Contarelli in Race 12.

Prepared by Nick Selvan, both gallopers served notice of their intentions with some inspiring training gallops on Oct 8.

On a track rated yielding to good, Diaz drew attention when he sprinted over the 600m in 39.8sec.

That was after he loosened up with a bout of cantering.

A good win over the same trip at his second start since relocating from Kranji in 2024 certainly puts Diaz among the top fancies in Race 9, a Class 4A race to be run over the 1,020m.

The victory was registered in a Class 5A event on Dec 22 when he came off a midfield spot at the 400m mark to beat Thunder Hero by a neck.

He followed it up with a slashing win at his next outing.

But that time he did it differently, leading from the get-go and never once surrendering his advantage.

He eventually put 3¾ lengths between himself and second-placed Big Saga.

Since then, the Winning Rupert six-year-old has been sparingly raced but he was never too far away at his last three runs beginning on Aug 2.

Selvan has done a good job keeping Diaz in fine trim and he could reap in the rewards sooner rather than later.

As for Contarelli, he was in brilliant form over the 600m which he did in an easy 38.3sec.

Much like Diaz, that sprint came after a round of cantering.

Contarelli boasts a record of three wins, with the first coming in a 1,200m race on Dec 28, shortly after he moved north from Kranji where he did not score in 11 starts for Donna Logan.

He followed it up when scoring over the 1,300m on Jan 12 and the last salute came at the Penang Turf Club’s farewell in a Class 4A race over 1,400m on May 31.

The Caravaggio six-year-old almost caused a boilover when running fourth to Pacific Atlantic at his last start in a Class 4A (1,100m) on Sept 28.

“Pegasus” may be a mythical horse, but the name would have still been on the lips of many who were taking in the training gallops.

There was Maximus Pegasus who ran the 600m in 42sec, and not to be outdone, Rocky Pegasus did the trip in a similar time which left Achilles Pegasus to come in at 43.4sec.

All three will see action on Oct 12 and the connections will be hoping their winged warriors fly home.

Of the trio, Maximus Pegasus might be the one whom racegoers will be most drawn to.

Another one who has settled in nicely in Selvan’s yard, he was a good thing beaten on his Sept 14 debut when losing out by a short head in a 1,200m race.

The Star Turn three-year-old would have improved since then and it should be enough to see him contest the finish in Race 4.

Rocky Pegasus, who will see action in the 10th event, comes up against some of the best horses currently stabled at the SLTC.

But the Redwood four-year-old is as honest as they come and, to date, he has two wins, two seconds, two thirds and two fourth placings for trainer Siva Kumar.

Last time out, also on Sept 14, he carried stable confidence and racegoers sent him off as the third pick in that 1,400m race.

Alas, he had a “rocky” run and was forced to ease back at the 1,100m mark.

To his credit, he came on again to hold down second spot behind Irish Goodbye.

With the likes of Antipodean and Lucky Magic among his rivals in the NZB Sale Championship (1,400m), he will be fully tested.

However, he will have just 52.5kg to shoulder and that pull in the weights plus that good workout on Oct 8 should serve him well.

As for Achilles Pegasus, he ran a terrific front-running race on Aug 3 and he was not cowed when the challenges came from the fancied runners.

Instead, it spurred the Siva-trained Per Incanto four-year-old towards a neck-win.

Class 4 (B) looks to be his comfort zone. With few of his rivals showing much recent form, Achilles Pegasus could again prove to be a tough cookie to crack.

Source : Brian Miller