Catalyst Future with Pike Looks Bright

Group 1-winning galloper Catalyst (Darci Brahma) was back in action at the Cambridge trials on Thursday and pleased his connections when finishing a nose second behind stablemate Marchioness (Iffraaj) in a hit-out over 950m, reports loveracing.co.nz. The dominant force as a spring and summer 3YO of his year in New Zealand, Catalyst has raced just once in the past 18 months, when pulling up sore after trailing the field home in the Gr2 The Shorts (1100m) last spring. The now 5YO is having his first campaign for trainer Tony Pike, after his former conditioner Clayton Chipperfield stepped away from training, and the son of Darci Brahma presented a noticeably more mature horse at Cambridge. Raced by The Oaks Stud’s Dick Karreman, Catalyst has options on both sides of the Tasman, with connections delighted to see the galloper retain his zest for racing. “He’s 40 to 50 kilos heavier than he was as a 3YO, so he’s certainly muscled up,” The Oaks Stud General Manager Rick Williams said. “He hasn’t raced for a year, but he’s been in and out of the water treadmill, so he’s never spent a long time in the paddock.” Catalyst will likely trial again with races such as the Gr2 Valachi Downs Foxbridge Plate (1200m) at Te Rapa and the Gr1 Tarzino Trophy (1400m) at Hawke’s Bay potential kick-off points.