Sunday's Previews

The mighty Avana returns to action for the first time this season and takes on a star-studded field in the afternoon's opening race of a highly-competitive Sunday card

May 17, 2025

**AVANA (Amadeo Perez)** — *photo Michael Bye*

Race Previews — Sunday, May 18

AVANA swept all before her last season. Her six-win haul included five Stakes victories at Hastings, culminating in a B.C. Oaks. She can be forgiven her loss in a late-season expedition to New Mexico, has been training well and, as long as she doesn’t get too far behind early, can get her 4-year-old campaign off to a winning start. It won’t be easy. Both BUNNY and AIR FORCE are top-notch performers with speed to spare and either one is perfectly capable of winning this on their day. VIVA LA DIVA must be sick of the sight of her stablemate Avana’s rear end, chasing her home three times last season. She has the talent to feature prominently but may have to settle for a bridesmaid role once again.

NU BLEND looks to have this at her mercy and will be a warm favourite to bag a first career win following several promising efforts last term. She was fourth on her opening day outing against tougher opposition than she faces today and looks the one to beat. NOZOMI returns to the fray in short order after a fourth-place finish last weekend and, as long as that didn’t take to much out of her, she should be closer today. MISS LARUE got plenty of experience in her juvenile campaign and showed enough to suggest she won’t be a maiden too much longer.

KITTEN KANDY looks the answer here. She has to beat boys and older horses but, appearing for the first time in September of her two-year-old season, she ran well in both starts and is working well. Any level of progression from two to three should see her go close. Experience counts around Hastings’ tight turns and ANDALEIGH already has three third-place finishes from nine races. Hard to see him missing the board again if able to reproduce his final run of last season. Kitten Kandy’s stablemate EXIT TUNNEL is a brother to winners and his sole outing last year came in the toughest company. This looks a completely different proposition.

BLUEBIRD CAFE makes her first appearance for new connections since being claimed last September and, while there’s probably very little between any of these, she represents the fast-starting Keith Pedersen barn that already has a winner and has hit the board with eight of its nine runners. The Dino Condilenios-trained DUKE GIRLS also comes from a barn in form and she closed out last year with a good win in similar company. WEEKENDINDELMAR, who showed occasional signs of talent last season before losing her way, is another who runs for the first time since being claimed and, in trainer Rob Maybin, also hails from a quick-starting outfit.

The first foal from the smart performer Krissy, KRIS’S GOLD ran just three times as a juvenile last year, all coming against the best company. A repeat of his rallying third behind Mount Doom and Counter Cat in the Glenn Todd Ascot Graduation in September could be enough to get the job done here. RONDELITO also found himself in tough company last year and has the benefit of a run under his belt already this season while, of the unraced pair, TOUCH THE SUN makes most appeal after a recent eyebrow-raising piece of work.

BUCK’S FIZZ should be spot on after going down by less than a length on opening day and may be the answer in a competitive-looking finale. STANFORD NORTH faded late after taking them a fair way in the same race and that effort should also have made him game-ready for today. HIGHLINER makes a rapid return to action after last weekend’s win and is an obvious candidate if sufficiently recovered.