Bowen’s Button has Team Peaking for Cup and Cleveland

Bowen trainer Tom Button has warned punters not to write off Northern Pride in his defence of the $100,000 Cleveland Bay Hcp title at Cluden Park on Saturday.

Northern Pride, a $12 chance, has won just one race since his brilliant victory last year, but a dream draw in barrier four has Button believing the gelding can go back-to-back.

“We’ve got the same draw, same weight and same jockey – Lacey Morrison – and I think he’s a great chance,” Button said.

“If he gets a similar run to what he got last year I think he’ll be in the finish.

“I’ve said to a few people he’s actually going better now than he was last year. He’s raced without luck at his past couple and he’s really at his top.

“In the Mackay Newmarket he drew a bit wide, we had to drag him back and he didn’t have a lot of luck and still ran sixth beaten 1 1/2 lengths.

“He’s a real chance.”

Northern Pride won the Chairman’s Sprint last year on the way to a courageous win in last year’s Cleveland Bay Hcp to give Button his second win in the big race.

Button has followed a similar path with his other runner Hellish ($10) but conceded his task has been made tough with an outside barrier 20.

Hellish has won his only two starts for the Button stable, his latest in the Chairman’s Sprint on July 19.

“It’s going to be tricky now from that draw. He’s obviously a forward running horse and he’s going to have to work a bit from the outside,” Button said.

“We’ll just have to push forward and try and get a rest mid-race and hope to hang on.

“I think we’ve got two chances, Hellish is going to need a bit of luck.”

In what could be a huge day for the stable, Button is also keen on his chances in the Townsville Cup with his two runners, Rogue Bear ($11) and Dillinger ($20).

Button head hunted Rogue Bear, raced by national syndicator Australian Bloodstock, for a Northern Cups campaign and rates the gelding highly.

“I trained for Australian Bloodstock previously and I saw this horse’s last run at Doomben and it was a really good effort. He drew poorly, they dragged him back and he hit the line really strongly at his first go at a trip this prep,” Button said.

“I made a phone call to Jamie Lovett at Australian Bloodstock and said he’s the right sort of horse for the cups up here. They talked to Kris Lees (trainer) and they decided to send him up.

“He’s fourth up, he’ll be peaking, he’s drawn well and he’s a really, really good each way chance and I think he’ll be very hard to beat.

“I think Dillinger is also an each-way chance.

“It’s been a little bit of a rush with him. We got him up not long before he raced last Saturday and he ran a very good fourth. We were originally thinking of going to the Cairns Amateur Cup next week. Most of the owners live in Sydney and are up this weekend so we thought if he pulls up well we’ll go to the Cup.

“He won at Caufield over 1800m in April so he’s got the right sort of credentials. If he backs up he’s definitely an eachway chance.

“I’ve got two runners in both races and I think they’re all a chance.”