V75® (jackpot): Önas Prince toward Elitloppet – "A good horse to single on Saturday"
The second step toward Elitloppet.
Önas Prince comes to Åby with a traced-out plan for the future.
"The goal is for the horse to be undefeated at Åby in two more starts, then it's third time lucky in Elitloppet," says trainer/driver Per Nordström.
He made almost SEK 7 million as a 4-year-old.
The year after, he made a break in a good spot in the Elitlopp final.
Last year, he finished fourth in the same race.
But this season, Önas Prince is supposed to be even better.
That is because a little bone chip that has been bothering him was removed from his left knee.
"In hindsight, I believe that bone chip came loose in his first Elitlopp final, in the last turn. He felt incredibly strong at that point, we had gotten some separation on Etonnat and the hair on my arms stood up when all of a sudden it felt like someone wiped out his front legs. He continued to race well after that, but on a few different occasions, I felt that something bothered him," says Per Nordström and explains how he started suspecting something was wrong with the big poster boy of the stable.
"When he won Copenhagen Cup last year, he was on the left line a bit in the straightaways, he wanted to run out, which he had never done before. But at that point, there were only two weeks left before Elitloppet and I found no reason to take him to the veterinarian. At Solvalla, he gave up too easily in the elimination and had a bit of a head nod scoring down for the final heat. But this horse is so tough, he went straight to the lead anyway. I chose to let Hohneck go since he didn't feel perfect. He had a lot of trot in the last turn, but for the last 140 meters, I just had to focus on keeping him trotting and I couldn't pull his earhood or ask him to go. That was a clear sign of something bothering him," says Nordström, who let his horse race two more times last season.
"We had a major check-up made on him after Elitloppet, but the x-rays showed nothing wrong, so we raced him in Hugo Åbergs here at home. But in that start, he got rough gaited even sooner and my gut feeling told me there was something wrong with his knee. We decided to do keyhole surgery and the first thing they saw was a bone chip that was encapsulated, which meant it had been there for quite some time".
How did you react when they found it?
"I was very happy. We had an explanation. And since it hadn't damaged the cartilage, he has been able to heal a hundred percent. Soft tissue injuries such as a suspensory where the problem can reoccur are much worse. The convalescence and training down has worked out perfectly and the horse has fully recovered," says Nordström, who raced Önas Prince at Åby two weeks ago, after eight months off.
Did you feel any difference in your horse compared to earlier?
"He was just as I had wished for. I can't say there was a big difference compared to his first couple of starts last year when he was sound and felt great. The difference will be in the tough races when he has to go all out and I think the horse will be happily surprised when he has to dig deep and finds out that it doesn't hurt anymore. Even if he has raced for a while now, I don't think he has reached his maximal potential. This year's Elitlopp looks like it will be the toughest one in a very long time. I think the winner has to trot 1:08.5 and I think my horse is capable of doing that. The goal is of course to get him there and try to win".
How did he come out of his seasonal debut?
"In the best way possible. He is happy and alert. I have pushed him in one heat, but other than that, I have taken it easy on him. He has taken steps on the form indicator and will be better on Saturday, I can tell by looking at the heart rate monitor. The lowest his resting heart rate has been at is 23, and now it's 24 so he is not that far from being in top form".
Are you making any changes on him for Saturday?
"Yes, we will optimize him a little bit. I will have an earhood that I can pull, with set earplugs underneath. He has raced like that several times before. The only time I had the earhood without anything underneath was in the Elitlopp final last year, but then I wasn't able to pull it, so that extra gear is still unused. We will also race him in an American sulky, but the open bridle stays on".
"Perfect racing schedule"
The field on Saturday is not much tougher than in the seasonal debut when Önas Prince jogged to victory with 1 Kagan finishing second. The post position though, is much worse this time, the very outside post behind the gait.
What are your thoughts on the race?
"I admit that I think it looks good on paper, despite the post position, but you should never underestimate an opponent. My horse has many good qualities and one of them is his ability to leave, so why not utilize that? He has taken the lead from post eight before, but a horse can always take a bad step so I won't lock in on a certain tactic, I will decide when I'm behind the gate whether I will leave with him or not".
Is he as quick behind the gate in an open bridle as he is with the blinds?
"Of course, he gets even quicker with the blinds, but he can step out of there nicely even in an open bridle. Last year, he didn't race with blinds until Elitloppet. In the Copenhagen Cup, I raced him in a pull-down bridle, that I never had to use".
It is no secret that you are aiming at Elitloppet, how important is the Saturday start in that aspect?
"It's an important step. It will be his fifth start at Åby and he has never lost there, so it's a track that he likes. If he wins, there will be a month until the final of the Paralympic Trot and after that, another three weeks to Elitloppet. That would be a perfect racing schedule, that gives me time to check him up with the veterinarian, in between each start".
V75 this week comes with a SEK 65 million jackpot. Many bettors will build their tickets around Önas Prince, is that wise?
"Yes. I think that is a good horse to single on Saturday," says Per Nordström.
"Could do well on V75"
Here are Per Nordström's thoughts on his other V75 starter, 11 Wanderlust Pellini (V75-2).
"The horse was over-ambitious last year and got too hot behind the gate which made him make many breaks. He is now a gelding as of six months and it feels like he is settling down now. I was happy with how he acted in his season debut. We got to the lead, we won't from post 11, but his chances of getting away trotting increase when he starts in the second tier. The breaks have come when someone has held him out and he has gotten too anxious to get past them. I think he can leave well, even from the second tier and I will try to follow 5 Jackie O.H.S. to find a spot somewhere midpack. The horse has potential and if he starts to cooperate fully, he could do well on V75 and in some of the stakes later this year. We are not making any changes from his last start and just like Önas, I can feel that he has gotten better with that start in his legs. The post position means that we need luck to win, but I think he should have a good chance to finish top three".