V85 (jackpot): Exciting weekend for Lill-Norsken – "Mizai is in terrific form"
Jan Ove Olsen has an exciting weekend ahead of him.
On Saturday, Mizai is a leading win contender in the Gold Division at his home track Hagmyren.
On Sunday, he has two horses in the Norwegian Coldblood Criterium and a finalist in the Norwegian Coldblood Derby.
"It’s going to be incredibly exciting, and I’m so darn pleased with the horses. Mizai is in super form, and if he can get to the lead, he could be very hard to beat," says Olsen, also known as "Lill-Norsken."
Hagmyren is hosting Saturday’s V85, with a card boosted by a jackpot. There is SEK 32 million in the pool for eight correct picks, according to ATG’s calculations, and popular home-team trainer Jan Ove Olsen is sending out his top horse Mizai, who has drawn an excellent post in the Gold Division with Mats E Djuse. The eight-year-old gelding is truly a model of consistency, with 22 wins from 79 starts and a top-three finish in half of his starts. He has earned just over SEK 2.6 million, and trainer Olsen has taken him all the way from his early career to the highest class.
"He’s a fantastic horse who has done incredibly well and really enjoys competing. He’s also shown in his most recent starts that he’s in really super form right now," says Jan Ove Olsen about his fast starter.
Mizai finished outside the money most recently after drawing a poor post, but he was locked in with plenty of trot left and timed 1:10.7 over the short distance. In the start before that, he won in 1:11.2 from a 20-meter handicap in a volt start race over 1,640 meters.
"4 Mizai (V85-3) was locked in with all the trot left most recently, and Mats actually said he had never felt him that good behind horses before. The horse also looked really good, and it was great that Mats was so darn pleased," says Lill-Norsken.
And he continues:
"Two starts ago, he was just one tenth of a second off the Swedish record when he won in 1:11.2 with volt start. It was a terrific performance, and the horse has shown that he’s in really super form. He went through his mandatory intervals today (Monday) and still looked good."
"From the lead, I’m guessing he’ll be very hard to beat"
Saturday’s Gold Division start will be from post four behind the starting gate over 1,640 meters in a field containing just seven horses.
What’s your feeling going into this start?
"Post four was the best post he could get because I think it’s the best one at Hagmyren, along with post three. He’s very fast from the start, and I hope he can hold the others off early. He’s also getting faster now that he’s in better form."
"If he can get to the lead, I’m guessing he’ll be very hard to beat. We’re not changing anything and will continue racing barefoot all around, with a blind bridle and an American sulky again."
Horses qualified for both the Coldblood Criterium and Coldblood Derby
Jan Ove Olsen, who has 48 horses in training (the stable is packed, according to Olsen himself) at his farm a mile outside Hagmyren, will head west on Sunday. It’s time for Bjerke’s major-race day in Oslo, and Lill-Norsken has managed to qualify two horses from his stable for the Norwegian Coldblood Criterium, which carries almost NOK 500,000 in first prize, as well as one horse for the Norwegian Coldblood Derby, which offers almost NOK 800,000 to the winner. They are 8 Troll Knut (V85-1) and 9 Ängsson (V85-1) in the Criterium and 12 Troll Rapp (V85-5) in the Derby.
"Both Troll Knut and Ängsson had good eliminations, and Ängsson put in a terrific elimination and finished second. He crossed the finish line with some left in the tank, and I hope and believe they’ll have improved from having a start in their legs. They’ve trained really well afterward, at least, and I hope Ängsson will have a chance."
"Troll Rapp qualified for the Criterium last year, and it was fun that he also managed to qualify for the Derby by finishing fifth. He’s a good horse who unfortunately drew post twelve, and from there we’ll have to drive for as much money as possible. It’s going to be a very exciting weekend that I’m really looking forward to," says Jan Ove Olsen.