Monologue looking to go out on top note

Promising mare Monologue (NZ) (Contributer) will close out her four-year-old campaign at Te Rapa where she will bid for further black type honours.

The emerging daughter of Contributer has enjoyed a successful preparation under the patient handling of trainer and part-owner Alexander Fieldes and will sign off in Saturday’s Gr.2 Travis Stakes (2000m).

The four-year-old earned a trip north with a bold run on her home track for third in the Gr.3 Manawatu Breeders’ Stakes (2000m) at Wanganui where she was ridden by Joe Doyle, who will continue his association with the mare.

“She’s going well and she went better than I thought on the hard track,” Fieldes said.

“I’ve been working her at the beach, so I haven’t given her a hit-out on a firm track, but it was a $100,000 race and she came through it well.

“This will be her last run and if she was going well enough, we were always going to have a go at the Travis.”

It may not be the strongest edition of the weight-for-age feature on Saturday, but Fieldes has healthy respect for the opposition.

“Te Akau’s horse (Qali Al Farrasha (NZ) (Almanzor)) is the best in the race by a fair bit and Niall Quinn’s one (Who Knows (NZ) (Redwood)) goes well and so do a few of the others, but we’re hopeful,” he said.

Fieldes purchased the Wellfield Holdings-bred Monologue as a juvenile via the Gavelhouse platform for $14,000.

“She’s always showed a bit of ability, and I didn’t break her in until December of her two-year-old career, so she was eight to 10 months behind most of the others and hasn’t had many starts,” Fieldes said.

She is a daughter of the Zabeel mare Oriental Star, whose dam Flowerdrum (Mister Baileys) was a gifted performer with her eight victories including success in the Gr.2 Stocks Stakes (1600m).

Monologue has put together the tidy record of two wins from nine appearances and collected a further five minor placings.

“She’s only gone the one bad race, and she had an excuse when she was off the track the whole way in the Lowland (Gr.2, 2100m),” Fieldes said.

“We didn’t go to the Oaks (Gr.1, 2400m) after that because she had a hard run and decided to put her out.”

Fieldes believes Monologue will further develop during her time out after the Travis.

“She’s still a year away and hopefully there might be a decent Cups race in her in time,” he said.