Team Tritton's fairytale start

By Adam Hamilton

IT’S the stuff dreams are made of.

Shane and Lauren Tritton’s move to North America has started in perfect style – two winners from their first two starters.

Kiwi-bred mare My Ruebe Star, who won 10 of her 48 starts Down Under, kicked things off an easy win at The Meadowlands’ comeback meeting on Saturday morning (our time).

She worked to the front from a wide draw (gate seven) for driver Jordan Stratton and kept rolling for a two length win in a 1min50.3sec mile.

Then, 24 hours later, another of their Kiwi-breds, the promising Gods Spirit, did much the same despite having to scorch through a 26sec opening quarter.

Gods Spirit, who won eight of his 26 Down Under starts, stopped the clock in a 1min50.1sec mile. It sliced 0.8sec off his career-best Menangle mile winning time.

Stratton also drove God’s Spirit and will continue to drive Team Tritton’s runners in the short term.

“Lauren will drive her and soon, but it might be a couple of weeks,” Shane Tritton said. “She’s been driving at the qualifiers, but wants to watch the racing and let the horses settle in a bit before going into the races herself.”

Shane was thrilled with the perfect start.

“We knew the horses got in well over here under the prizemoney handicapping system, especially because of the exchange rate, but to be two-from-two is amazing,” he said.

“We’re still very much in a learning phase as far as how to train them here. We’ve been much, much easier on the horses than we were back in Sydney.”

Team Tritton has 18 horses in work – 12 they took to the US from Sydney – and most will be ready to race in coming weeks.

He pinpointed classy veterans Flaming Flutter and Yayas Hot Spot as two who should excel early under the handicapping system.