Fleming and Moran kick-start partnership in Red Hot fashion

Goulburn Valley horseman Greg Fleming and prominent trainer-driver David Moran have quickly settled into a formidable combination.

Since joining forces in September, the number of winners they have trained out of Fleming's Moorilim property - which operates under the Maurlen Equine banner - has reached double figures.

It is a promising start to what they hope will lead to much bigger things down the track.

Fleming has secured the services of Moran to train his team.

He said they were in the process of formalising the new partnership, including the transfer of horses into Moran's name as trainer.

Fleming said as well as carrying out the role of private trainer for him, Moran would also be available to train for other stable clients.

He said Moran had retained owners he had previously trained for and he would continue to prepare horses for them as part of the Maurlen operation.

Fleming said he was excited about getting Moran on board.

“We have had a pretty good start,” he said.

Fleming has developed his training complex over the past two years and at the moment has about 20 horses in work.

“It has all the mod-cons - a treadmill and swimming pool,” he said.

One of the best performers in the team at the moment is Red Hot Assassin. He has won his three starts since resuming from a break and lines up in the third heat of the Woodlands Stud Australia Breeders Crown Series for three-year-old colts and geldings at Bendigo on Friday night.

Red Hot Assassin - bred, raced and trained by Fleming - faces boom youngster Captain Ravishing and New Zealand visitor Marry Perry - both Victoria Derby heat winners.

Fleming is not expecting too much from his Four Starzzz Shark gelding, but as long as he gets around he will progress to the semi-finals.

“He's a handy horse, but he's no star,” Fleming said.

“He might be out of his depth, but he's handy around the bush and we thought we'd give him a chance.”

With only one win before this preparation, Fleming believes some added maturity has been a factor in his improvement.

Red Hot Assassin won first-up going 1:54.2 at Wagga on October 7 and has followed up with wins at Kilmore and at Swan Hill - near where Fleming began training in Wood Wood, north of Nyah on the Murray River.

For Fleming and Moran, getting Red Hot Assassin to the Breeders Crown has not been straightforward.

Flood waters inundated Fleming's property - which is located between Shepparton and Nagambie - forcing them to evacuate all their horses to Moran's former Shepparton base.

And Fleming expects to have to wait at least a month before resuming training back home, with it not possible at the moment to get machinery in to repair his track.

In the meantime, he’s happy to just keep building the new partnership with Moran.

As well as three Breeders Crown heats at Bendigo for three-year-old colts and gelding, there are four qualifiers for three-year-old fillies.

They act as stepping stones to semi-finals at Melton on November 12.