Horse racing: La Crique back to brilliant best

The undisputed star of the Alexanders’ Te Awamutu stable, La Crique had endured a turbulent 12 months since her runner-up finish behind Levante in the same race in February last year. So this is hugely satisfying and we couldn’t be happier.”There has never been any doubt about La Crique’s quality. La Crique became a Group 1 winner with a dazzling Arrowfield Plate (1600m) performance at Matamata in the spring of her 4-year-old season but had gone winless in seven starts through the 16 months since. She’s very tough and she’s tried to battle her way through it. Aegon chased hard and ate into the margin late in the piece, with Desert Lightning sticking on bravely in third, but La Crique triumphed by a length-and-a-quarter.