Bel Mer, No Respite 28/07/09

Bel Mer on trial for Manikato
By Mark Ryan
Melbourne
Monday 27 July 2009, 6:18pm
A bold showing from Bel Mer in the Bletchingly Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday could set her up for a start in next month's Group One Manikato Stakes.
The mare, who will be a five-year-old on the horses' birthday on Saturday, is one of trainer Mick Price's five individual winners of six Group One races this season, a tally bettered only by Gai Waterhouse with seven.
The daughter of Bel Esprit is a renowned fresh performer and won the Group One Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m) at Morphettville first-up in March.
"She's come up fine. She's probably not one hundred per cent forward as I had her in the Group One but the Sangster was the main point of that preparation," Price said.
"I've just got her nice to run a good race, she races well fresh and she has had a trial in which she was very good.
"She's as good physically as she was last time in.
"We're running in the Bletchingly and if we get a guide that she's come up we might race her for another year.
"She's going to be a valuable broodmare but I'm pretty sure we can keep her going for another year.
"I'm very happy with her. She's as sound and as bright and sparky as she ever was and if she can nearly win this we'll freshen her up for the Manikato."
Also earmarked for the Manikato Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley on September 25 are I Am Invincible, unbeaten filly Black Caviar and last year's Bletchingly winner Commanding Hope.
Bel Mer ran eleventh to Typhoon Zed in last year's weight-for-age Manikato but jumped from the outside barrier and Price said she was speared off the track before being beaten 4-1/2 lengths.
Apart from her Sangster victory, Bel Mer's best Group One performance was a 2-1/2 length second to Weekend Hussler in the 2007 Coolmore Stakes (1200m) at Flemington as a spring three-year-old.
"She's a restricted Group One performer, she's just off the top horses," Price said.
"She never has a day when she's quiet. She's full of nervous energy."
Group One winners Let Go Thommo, Mr Baritone and Orange County are also among the 13 nominations for the Bletchingly, as are Group One placegetters Stanzout and exciting Peter Morgan-trained speedster I Am Invincible, a first-up winner of the Monash Stakes (1100m) at Caulfield on July 18.

No Respite For Bargain Hunter
Former jockey Craig Carmody has been searching long and hard for bargains since making the transition to the training ranks and he believes he has found one in No Respite.
The two-year-old Bel Esprit gelding was a $45,000 purchase at the Inglis Classic Sale and has been nominated for three races this week, including a maiden at Warwick Farm on Friday and the 1200 metre The Rosebud at Rosehill on Saturday.
Carmody, an 11-time Group One winning jockey who started training in late 2005, said he would most likely bypass The Rosebud in favour of a 1400 metre race on the same program.
"I think they might be a bit sharp for him in the Rosebud and he'll appreciate the extra distance in the Rating 75 race, that's what I'm leaning to at this stage," Carmody said.
No Respite is yet to win from four starts but has been placed three times including a long neck second to the promising Knot Out at Randwick on July 8 over 1150 metres.
The pair was so dominant that the third placed Flaming Rock was another five lengths away.
"He got held up slightly but he had his chance and the winner was too good on the day," Carmody said.
The Randwick trainer has five horses in work and is hoping No Respite can help lure prospective owners.
"Our budget has been pretty low since I've been training and I've been searching hard for bargains," Carmody said.
"But if you search long and hard enough you can find them and I think this horse has a future, hopefully he can put my name out there."
No Respite came from last on the turn at Randwick and made up plenty of ground in the heavy going and Carmody is hoping for plenty of early speed in Saturday's 1400 metre assignment.
"He's got a pattern of being a backmarker and has a great turn of foot, so that's the way we'll continue to ride him," Carmody said.
"He hasn't matured mentally yet and hasn't quite worked out how to start his race yet.
"Until he does he'll continue to be ridden cold."
As a jockey, Carmody was best known for his association with elite gallopers Intergaze and Angst.
Intergaze, who was trained by Carmody's former master Rod Craig, won eight Group One races, seven with Carmody aboard.
The Noel Mayfield-Smith trained Angst made a clean sweep of the four-race Princess series in 1993 before she tragically died after a throat operation.
The now retired Samantha Miss became the only filly to match the feat of Angst when she won all four legs of the 2008 Princess series.