Predicting a bright future for Blue Magician

By Josh Spasaro

When Blue Magician blitzed the field by six lengths at Q1 Lakeside last Thursday night, New South Wales trainer Michael Patterson knew then that he belonged in elite company.

And, the two-year-old blue dog proved that in the second Lakeside Cup heat at the same venue on Thursday night, recording the fastest time of 25.14 seconds over the 457 metre journey.

The Barcia Bale and Angel Glow juvenile chaser began well from box six and widened his lead on the home straight, defeating Row Beau.

From the same lane, he ran a similar race in heavy rain last week, saluting by six lengths.

His time was also a good one, crossing the line in 25.26 seconds.

“His previous run was very impressive. I think we had the best time at the track that night because the rain got heavier as the night went on,” Patterson said.

“It gave me the confidence to put him up against these top-quality dogs.

“They’re dogs on the way up, like he is on the way up. It was pretty impressive what he did that week. He’s only a young dog.”

With six wins from 12 starts, Patterson said Blue Magician still had a lot to learn, particularly at box rise.

“He’s not a brilliant box dog. He’s probably getting a bit better. I trialled him on the Q2 and he went absolutely super as a pup,” he said.

“I decided then to take him to Grafton to try and win the big maiden. I thought I had a mortgage on it. But, he came out three or four lengths last.

“That was just a learning experience. He’s not a brilliant box dog, but he’s getting better.”

However, Patterson said he was happy with the way Blue Magician was finishing his races.

“I’m looking forward to getting him back on the Q2. I don’t know how far he’ll go distance-wise, but he’s finishing off his races strong on the Q1,” he said.

“He’s hitting the line hard, which is a pretty good trait.”

Out of Angel Glow, who was trained by Jane Carruthers, Blue Magician tips the scales at over 33kg.

“He’s got a big stride on him. He’s a long dog and he’s handling things now,” Patterson said.

“He’s really learning and picking it up.”

Based at Iluka near Yamba in New South Wales, Patterson trained He Knows Uno to Group 1 glory, a highlight being his 2010 Brisbane Cup victory.

“He was a great Albion Park dog and raced the best of his era,” he said.

"I bred him here in Iluka.”