Carnival to make Australian debut
Group 3-winning mare Carnival has recently joined the Flemington stable of Russell and Scott Cameron and is set to make her Australian debut in the Group 3 Ladbrokes Odds Boost Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield on Saturday.
The five-year-old chestnut was set to race at Riccarton earlier this month for former trainers Kevin and Pam Hughes, but transport schedules hindered those plans.
“We were hoping to give her a run here the other day, but the way the transport went we couldn’t give her a run,” Kevin Hughes said.
“We have given her a trial and have sent her over there. When she was over here she was pretty much right on the mark, I think she would have won at Riccarton if we had started her.
“In her trial she was really good, right on the mark. The final gallop she had is as good as I have seen I’d say, she’s a wee bit stronger now.”
Hughes cited weight as a major contributing factor to send Carnival to Melbourne and he thinks she will be competitive at the highest level over there.
“If she carried on here, she’s not a big horse, she would get far too much weight and there are plenty of opportunities over there,” he said.
“I think she will go okay. I haven’t heard a lot from Scott, but I think everything has been going well and they are very pleased with her.
“She was right on the mark when she left here and she doesn’t take a lot of galloping to keep her right. I think she will measure up (over there).”
Carnival was the winner of four races in New Zealand, including victory in last year’s Group 3 Stewards Stakes Handicap (1200m) at Riccarton, and her connections are hoping she can add to that tally on Saturday.