Japanese jockey scores terrific treble
BY TONY BIRD
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Racing
Japanese rider Masa Tanaka has made a great start to the holiday racing carnival.
Tanaka, 25, followed up a winning double at Awapuni on Boxing Day with a winning treble at the Taranaki Thoroughbred Racing meeting in New Plymouth yesterday.
Tanaka's success on Hamilton visitor Secret Magic in The Taranaki Daily News 1800 took his career wins tally to 72 and followed back-to-back successes on 26-1 shot Likeyourstyle and Dhariat earlier in the Taranaki programme.
The Palmerston North rider completes his apprenticeship on February 3. He plans to stay based at Awapuni where he is attached to Matthew Eales' stable.
Tanaka's win on Secret Magic was for his former boss Graeme Rogerson, who now trains the horse in partnership with his wife Debbie.
When the Awapuni arm of the Rogerson operation closed at the end of last season, with the trainer settling on Hamilton, Tanaka elected to stay in Palmerston North, transferring to Eales.
Tanaka started his career in racing attending a school for apprentice jockeys in Japan.
He said government restrictions in his homeland saw him seek the opportunity five years ago to try his luck in New Zealand.
He was placed here with Rogerson after approaches were made on his behalf by former top Australian jockey Mel Schumacher, who was working as a riding master at the Japanese riding school at the time.
Secret Magic's latest and fifth career win followed a disappointing effort at his previous start when the son of Fantastic Light beat only one home.
Stable foreman for Rogerson, former Hawera trainer Roydon Bergusson, put the dismal Te Rapa failure down to the second-up syndrome following a bold fresh-up effort. "You get that sometimes," Rogerson said.
He said Secret Magic spent several weeks with a pre-trainer at Waiuku working on the beach there following his winter layoff.
- © Fairfax NZ News
