Patterson eyes Opunake Cup breakthrough
Paul Vettise - Raceform • July 19th, 2025 9:00 AM • 3 min read
Robbie Patterson will be heavy-handed in his quest to break new ground on his home course on Saturday.
The New Plymouth trainer will have a trio of runners chasing victory for the stable in the Listed Sinclair Electrical & Refrigeration Opunake Cup, a local title that has so far eluded him.
“We’ve won practically everything else at New Plymouth, so it would be good to win it,” Patterson told RaceForm.
“That would make it 10 black-type winners for the season, including a couple of Group Ones (Leica Lucy, One Bold Cat), so that would be quite a feat for the stable.”
Patterson’s assault on the $120,000 feature will be spearheaded by Our Jumala and with strong support from Belles Beau and Sinbin.
Patterson backed the Zed mare Our Jumala to turn her form around and be the best of his Cup chances.
“On what they have all done so far, she is the best horse and goes well on her home track and she loves wet ground,” he said.
Our Jumala won the Gr. 3 Cuddle Stakes and finished third in the Listed Rotorua Cup during an autumn campaign that ended when she uncharacteristically tailed the field home in the Listed AGC Training Stakes.
The six-year-old daughter of Zed has also proved to be a potent first-up merchant with four victories off a break.
“She’s been a late-maturer who’s had her share of niggles,” Patterson said. “But she’s there now and she goes very well fresh up, and she has to be a good chance with 53 kilograms.
“She hasn’t had a jumpout or a trial and I’ve taken her to Hawera for a couple of good gallops, and she’s pulled up well. I haven’t done a lot with her because she goes so well fresh and had a lot of residual fitness anyway.”
Belles Beau accounted for subsequent winners Bradman and Benefactor at Whanganui two runs back before the Iffraaj four-year-old finished third last time out at Ōtaki.
“He looked a bit disappointing the other day, but I don’t think he copped the sticky ground, and it could be that on Saturday, so that’s a bit of a query,” Patterson said.
Derryn’s daughter Sinbin boasts an impressive recent form line with consecutive victories at New Plymouth and Trentham.
“Sinbin can’t be faulted on her latest runs and likes her home track,” Patterson said.
“Freebelle has won a couple and is going back in grade and she’s been working very well,” Patterson said. “She will be carrying the same weight (57 kilograms) that she had in the Rating 65 grade the other day, so she should take a power of beating.”
Freebelle wasn’t tested to score at Trentham and on her home turf, while Ma Te Wa has also enjoyed consecutive victory romps at Whanganui in his last two appearances.
“He will also be going back to the special maiden grade, and he’s been working along super, he should also take all sorts of beating. They are a couple of really nice chances for us.”
