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By Ray Hickson

Trainer Michael Freedman is hoping to start the new year in the same fashion as 2024 and claim the opening stakes race of the year when Time To Boogie tackles Wednesday’s Listed $200,000 Kia Canterbury Sprint (1200m).

Trainer Michael Freedman (Pic: Bradley Photos).

The five-year-old carries the same colours as stablemate Insurrection who was able to claim the New Year’s Day feature at Canterbury and Freedman said there are similarities between the duo.

“They are both very straightforward, bold going horses that seem to love their racing and trackwork,’’ he said.

“He’s always a willing sort of worker, it doesn’t vary too much and you’d go away from most gallops saying he worked well. I can’t remember the last time I didn’t.

“He seems in good order, bright and happy, and with barrier one it suits him in terms of where he’ll end up in the run.”

Time To Boogie, $2.90 with TAB on Tuesday, was due to resume earlier in December but Freedman elected to wait when Rosehill came up heavy for his planned return as the gelding was coming off an extended break.

So the gap between Time To Boogie’s first-up run and the Canterbury Sprint is a little shorter than Freedman had planned but he said there was plenty of merit in his eventual first-up run last Saturday week.

He was run down in the shadows by Iowna Merc and with the added fitness, and barrier one just like Insurrection had in the 2024 edition, Freedman says the set up is there for history to repeat.

“He was always going to have to go in second up but the fact he was delayed it means his first-up run was probably a little closer to the main race,’’ he said.

“It was excellent, for a horse that’s been off the scene for as long as he had to just be beaten by one who had a softer run and with race fitness on his side.

“He’ll put himself there and if something wants to take it up in front he can just park behind. Rachel (King) knows him well and I can’t remember the last time he carried 53kg.”

The form out of The Enchanter’s debut placing has encouraged Freedman and he’d like to see the three-year-old build on it in the Hawaii Five Oh @ Vinery Stud Plate (1200m).

He ventured to Nowra just over two weeks ago and was run down by Point And Shoot who then started favourite when narrowly beaten at Randwick last Saturday.

“The horse that beat him with race experience has come out and nearly won a 72 on Saturday,’’ he said.

“You don’t take much notice that it was a Nowra maiden and have a look at what was running in it, because there was a $100,000 Inglis bonus it wasn’t your garden variety maiden.

“He’s learned a lot out of that run from what I’ve seen at home.

“It’s a bit of a messy barrier with him but he’s definitely come on from that run as a lot of them do from having race experience.”

Time To Boogie runs second at Randwick on December 21

Meanwhile, Freedman has sent promising youngster Apocalyptic out for a couple of weeks after her eye-catching debut last weekend.

He said she’ll join stablemate Pallaton in the paddock for a short freshen before returning to the stable in mid-January to be aimed at the two-year-old features.

All the fields, form and replays for Wednesday’s Canterbury meeting