Racing
Burke’s make Hobart their backyard
In Brief
- Erica Byrne Burke rides a double.
- Photo goes Magnaprime's way.
- Lauren Burke opens her Tassie account.
Judging by the high standards Byrne Burke set during the opening quarter of the 25/26 season, 'only' four winners in November made it a lean month for the Irish-born rider.
December has started with a bang, however, landing the feature race in Launceston on Wednesday night aboard Blonde Star, following that with victories on Zambezi Blonde ($7.50) and Magnaprime ($2.70) on Friday.
Erica sat outside the leader on Zambezi Blonde to win a maiden (1100m) for trainer John Keys, before producing a perfect ride on Magnaprime for her former master Adam Trinder to win a class 3 (1400m).
"He was travelling really well, I just got held up on the corner slightly, but when I came out, he didn't really go through his gears and kind of hit a flat spot," Byrne Burke said of Magnaprime.
The first leg of the quaddie produced the closest finish of the day, with the judge being required to separate Magnaprime and the unlucky Georgaroni ($8), with Halen ($8) a close third.
"He's very hard work, but he's a nice horse going forward," the jockey added.
A $60,000 purchase at the 2023 Tasmanian Magic Millions Yearling Sale, Magnaprime has now won four of his 10 career starts to go with five minor placings for almost $185,000 in prize money. Trainer Adam Trinder indicated he will keep the bar "fairly low" for the four-year-old this preparation, but it seems likely there will be more wins in store.
Victorian notches first Tassie win
Victorian apprentice jockey Lauren Burke (no relation to Erica) opened her Tasmanian account at her second meeting in the state with a win aboard the John Blacker-trained Played Strong ($12) in a maiden (1400m).
The apprentice is indentured to Shane Nichols north of Bass Strait but will be seen more frequently in Tasmania as she searches for more race-day opportunities.
"Massive thanks to John and his team, they've brought me over for the week and been a great support to me," Lauren said.
"It's a beautiful place (Tasmania), and the people are really friendly. At the least I'm looking at a three-month loan, and we're working through that."
Played Strong came from a midfield position for a dominant victory, taking advantage of the interference suffered by race favourite Verhoeven ($1.85) in the home straight.
Lauren Burke has 29 career winners and will claim 2kg at most Tasmanian meetings.
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