Sport
12 June, 2024
Club president hopes talented stable star has turned a corner after impressive win
Le Weasel looked back to his best at Buchanan Park on Saturday.
Two years ago he was one of the most popular horses in Australia after a nation-wide betting plunge, now trainer Jay Morris is hoping Le Weasel can string together some races after a series of back luck.
On Saturday, the speedster led all of the way to be a big winner of the Benchmark 50 (1000m) with Jason Hoopert in the saddle.
The horse he beat, Hi Zero, had won by eight lengths the start prior.
Morris said he wasn’t getting ahead of himself but was glad to see Le Weasel back on the track and winning races.
Owned by the Saunders family, the four-year-old gelding was sent to Cloncurry in October 2022 for his first race start and, being a TAB meeting, the money came for him from all over the country.
“Darryl Hansen gave him his first race preparation and then he was sent out to me,” said Morris, who has been training for Graeme, Andrew and Lenore Saunders for the best part of 20 years.
“(Le Weasel) was a handful to begin with but he came good and we thought he was going to be very promising.
“We definitely got the money on that day in Cloncurry. I know he was heavily backed by plenty of people down south, too.”
However, it all went wrong just three weeks later in his second race start, also at Schumacher Park.
“He shattered a bone in his knee and once he cooled down his knee was as big as my head,” the trainer said.
“He still finished second ... Hoops was riding that day and said he was travelling nicely but his knee must have went at the 200m.
“I ended up staying with him for a while in Cloncurry before we could take him back home.”
Le Weasel ended back on the Sunshine Coast with Hansen, who rehabbed him and got him back on the track, winning one race at the Gold Coast before he was sent back to the North West.
Saturday’s win was his fourth race back on the track this year, after spelling following last year’s Birdsville races.
Morris said Le Weasel would likely head to the McKinlay races on Saturday week over 1200m.
“He’s a hard horse to get fit; he’s very robust. He’s not tall but he’s a unit.”