This G1 1200m under set weights and penalties was the last race run today as they abandoned the meeting after this due to a couple in this slipping near the home turn. This field was decimated with late scratchings that numbered five in total so over a third of the field came out and just ten went to the post due to the quite dramatic collapse of the track after some rain. Volpe Veloce, an Australian bred 4yo mare, was unbeaten on the track prior to the jump and remained so afterwards with a dominant length and a half win in 1:10.65. The juvenile filly winner earlier today before any rain clocked 1:09.32 or eight lengths superior to a G1 Open Class older horse sprint field and that shows the deterioration of the track. She has a good wet track record and only one real flop at that came at G1 under WFA versus allcomers at a mile when found out quite obviously. The mile was attainable when a 3yo and meeting her own age group and no serious time was ever run either but that has proven a bridge too far as a 4yo so far. Sprinting is her go and up to 1400m she is effective under handicap conditions but still has to prove that WFA against the males too is possible. Until she can make that step up then will be marked down accordingly and rightly so as WFA is the International benchmark that has worked for over a century. She was thrown in today at 54kg for her record overall and was ridden quieter back and wide in the more productive lanes on settling so not too far away from the leaders in a ten-horse field. Once set sail the run home when seventh and unleashing she quickly reached an ominous third at the 300m and second with 100m to go. The runner she was hunting down at this stage was Start Wondering that had 59kg (5kg more) and won this a year ago but whose rider had clearly gone way too soon on the topweight that had 3kg more than any other runner in the race at least. Jonathan Parkes rode Start Wondering and had been prior the regular rider of Volpe Veloce (nine rides for six wins) plus he came through to lead 400m out up the middle and closer in than was helpful. He picked the wrong ride and may not get back on the mare again but that is the judgement sword riders and their managers live by. Packing Eagle ran home powerfully for second in ground he is not entirely comfortable on plus he slipped near the home turn so many things conspired against this Hong Kong reject. After sitting sixth or seventh wide he turned for home eighth and the deepest and was still fourth with 50m to run but really attacked the line hard late. Volks Lightning sat fourth or fifth the outer and fought on well for third to get the invaluable G1 placing on the resume for her broodmare barn days and nights. Start Wondering was only headed at the 50m and still missed paying a dividend incredibly so the rider clearly went way too soon and used the wrong part of the straight for the first 300m of the run home. The 7yo gelding should have finished second for sure bare minimum. Sweet Leader ran a blinder for fifth when second up after a run in Benchmark 85 (this is on paper four to five grades inferior to a G1 handicap) and he only dropped half a kilo absurdly (this three-win 4yo male gave the winner, a nine-win mare, 1.5kg and that is impossible to accept). This 4yo also was tardy and came along the inside lanes across the top so ran in the slow glue areas of the track and even then was the closest in the run home. If he stays healthy and sound could be a serious horse. Melody Belle, the 3yo filly, shared the pace and was headed turning for home but was fighting on for second still at the 200m only to be crowded late and end up sixth. Speech Craft was a modest seventh after racing fourth or fifth, while Go Nicholas was running on okay out deep for eighth after being last on his own across the top. Somethingvain stopped after racing back and wide while Fully Funded shared the pace on the outer and dropped our badly however he slipped near the home turn so can be forgiven. The track made this result very suspect as on decent footing second or fourth or fifth could have won the race at least. To show how much the Ellerslie track changed first and third came from two of the three widest barriers and the runner up drew six while the fourth, fifth and sixth finishers drew the three inside stalls so it matters when track conditions change so dramatically. The G2 race before this over a mile saw three of the four outside gates form the trifecta and that race before that a G2 over 2400m saw gates 9 and 11 form the quinella and the race before that a Special Conditions over 2200m saw gates 14, 10 and 11 form the trifecta. The sprinting depth is poor at the moment and hopefully a dry track will be presented at Trentham for the G1 Telegraph (1200m) on January 20, also under set weights and penalties, as some questions may then be answered for this season. There has been way too much wet track or poorly presented or over-watered G1 racing so far this season in New Zealand and surely enough is enough with this dumping of so much water on a track close to raceday. The desperation or inexplicable need to beat or defy weather on racetracks is almost like a pandemic of global gallops spoiling or a communicable climate change disease of sheer asininity. If you cannot beat the weather then why bother trying as all it does is ruin the form worth totally, curb wagering enthusiasm alarmingly and shrink audience participation to near boutique sport numbers. Watering so much so close to G1 racemeetings is akin to too many cooks spoil the broth and since they have it backwards and upside down these days too many broths spoil the cook.