Mikey Maguire gets deserved Green Mile

By Jonny Turner

Veteran trainer Fred Fletcher had a spring in his step on Monday morning after Mikey Maguire’s win in the Green Mile at Methven on Sunday.

The Mach Three pacer is a horse bloodstock agents and Australian buyers have tried time after time to get their hands on.

But, Fletcher and his wife, Fay, have resisted big money offers so they can have the enjoyment of the racing the 6yr-old.

They got exactly that when Mikey Maguire came with a late finish along the passing lane for an upset win at $33 odds in the grass track feature for driver Colin deFilippi.

“At my age I need something to get up in the morning for and he is the type of horse that will always give you 100%,” Fletcher said.

“We were offered huge money for him and I don’t care if he never makes what we could have sold him for.”

“We are in it for racing  - at my age there is no need to worry about what you are going to do next.”

deFilippi pushed Mikey Maguire forward after a slowly retreating mobile gate left and he found the a spot for the horse in the one-one.

The pair stayed there, until the reinsman found a run on the inner in the home turn for to zoom home to beat Nandolo and Heisenberg.

“They are a couple of tough old campaigners he beat,” Fletcher said.

“He was bolting around the top corner, but he didn’t have much racing room.”

“It always looked like he was going to get there when he got out.”

“It was a great drive - we stick with Colin a bit.”

“He is a good driver and a good horseman, he wouldn’t have won so many races if he wasn’t.”

Mikey Maguire helped Fletcher complete a matching set of Methven Green Mile trophies on Sunday.

He won the Trotters Green Mile in 2014 with Royal Aspirations.

The squaregaiter’s stock are the next thing Fletcher has to get excited about.

He has three in his barn and they all look like stepping out this season as 2yr-olds.

“At the moment we are concentrating on his young ones – we have three of them and they will all make 2yr-olds.”

“We qualified two of them about three weeks ago at Ashburton and we have another filly that is up with those two, if not better.”

“So, we will have three 2yr-old trotters racing this season.”

Fletcher is hopeful his 2yr-olds can be flag flyers for his former, who stands at Phoebe Stud at Broadfields.

“Whether these 2yr-olds are good enough, we don’t know yet, but I am hoping Royal Aspirations will be a sensation sire as a trotter.”

“He is getting a lot more mares this year – and this is a hard mare for a stallion – his third season.”

“If he gets away to a good start with these trotters this season he will be one of the more favoured trotting sires next breeding season at a real cheap price.”

This year’s Trotters’ Green Mile was won by Heavyweight Hero in his first start since shifting south to Bob Butt’s Woodend Beach stable.

The 6yr-old held out last year’s winner, Amaretto Sun, by a length for driver David Butt.