Hitting the Jackpot

It is a busy few days leading up to a big weekend for Ballymore Stables and we hope to be in winning action from Thursday onwards!

Looking forward to saddling up two nice young horses at the very first meeting at the new "Racing.Com Park" which replaced Pakenham, we head to the Tynong track with Battle Zone and Buck Rogers.

Taking his place in the second event, the Cross Electrics 2Y0 Maiden Plate, Battle Zone is well related son of Zabeel making his debut.

"He is a really nice colt," Michael Moroney said of the bay who has drawn barrier nine with Steven Arnold aboard.

"At this time of year you can get some pretty good two-year-olds debuting so it might be a strong race but it is a nice starting point for him and he has shown a bit of speed for a Zabeel."

Two races later Buck Rogers contests the Racing.com Maiden Plate and we are hoping for an improved performance with the yet to be placed three-year-old sporting blinkers for the first time.

"He was a big improver with them on in a recent Werribee jump-out," Moroney reported, "and we are hoping he can turn his form around and show on race day what he has always shown us at home."

"He will need a bit of luck from the inside barrier but Steve (Arnold) has been happy with him and he is certainly a better horse than his form to date suggests."

The talented Jackpot, who unfortunately lost his first win on Australian soil on protest, heads north on Friday to contest the Albury Guineas.

Drawn nicely in barrier three with Kerrin McEvoy to ride, the talented Volksraad gelding has progressed nicely since his late February run and we are looking for a bold showing.

"Our only concern is that he has been up a while but he looks particularly well and he was good at the jump-outs too. On his best he will prove hard to beat."