He is an Aussie, but we’ve hardly seen him race here.
All that’s about to change in the next few months for arguably the best young trotter in this part of the world, Kyvalley Ray.
Trainer Brent Lilley said the three-year-old, who boasts eight wins from just 12 starts and five of them in major races, was “coming up great” and would be back racing late next month.
“I couldn’t be happier with him. He’s about two weeks off a trial. He’ll have a second trial and then go straight into the heats of the Need For Speed series on September 25,” he said.
The Kiwi-bred Kyvalley Ray started his career in Australia with four starts netting two wins, but gelding him transformed the horse and he went on a rampage in NZ, winning six of his eight starts across two campaigns.
He was the standout trotter in NZ at two and three.
When Kyvalley Ray returns for the Need For Speed heats, it will be his first start in Australia for 13 months.
But there are plenty more in store.
“After the Need For Speed final, he’s got the heats and final of the Victoria Derby and maybe the Breeders Crown in December, too,” Lilley said.
“The only thing that could change is the Breeders Crown. Jim (Connelly, owner) is quite keen to take him back to NZ for the (NZ) Trotting Derby in November, but we’ll see how he gets through the two big targets here first.
“The other thing about NZ is they don’t have the big (three-year-old trotting) slot race anymore, which makes a trip a bit less attractive.
“And they’ve programmed a prelude for the Derby, but it’s on November 6 and that’s way too close to the Victoria (Trotters’) Derby on November 1.
“Either way, it’ll be a busy finish to the year, but he had a really good break after those big wins in Auckland (in May). He had about seven or eight weeks out.
“And there’s not a lot of big races for four-year-old trotters except the Great Square in Brisbane, so he’ll have a pretty quiet year, next year.”
Lilley is confident Kyvalley Ray will make the transition from star youngster to major open-class player.
“You never know until they actually do it, but I’d be very surprised if he didn’t,” he said.
“He’s very tough. He didn’t really handle the opposite way of racing in Auckland, but his ability and his strength got him through. Blair (Orange, driver) kept saying how strong he felt, especially at the end of the 2700m of the Northern Derby at his most recent run (May 8).
“He’s also by Bold Eagle and all the experts you talk to are stunned he’s been so good so early. They say most of the Bold Eagles are three-and-a-half before they really start to get going.
“Hopefully that’s another thing that’ll stand him in good stead.”
PHOTOS: HRNZ/Race Images NZ
