Overseas trip on the cards for champion sprinter Chautauqua
Royal Ascot is off the cards for champion sprinter Chautauqua, but its connections haven’t ruled out possible trips to Japan, Hong Kong and America.
Part owner of the last start Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize winner, Rupert Legh, will meet with senior trainer John Hawkes in two weeks to discuss the gelding’s upcoming plans.
Legh said races like the Manikato and Darley Classic are on the cards and the Breeders’ Cup Turf in America is also a possibility.
“It’s great to have him back [in Australia],” Legh said.
“There’s always that nervousness when you travel a horse. As I said to John, ‘you’re like an expectant father, waiting for them to get home.
“But he travelled really well.”
The Hawkes-trained runner has another week in quarantine and Legh said it will likely have another couple of weeks rest.
“John and I have got a meeting in about two weeks time to map out a bit of a program going forward,” he said.
“We’ve got different options. It’s a great problem to have.
“You’re thinking options like Manikato, Darley Classic and Hong Kong.”
There is an option to race in Japan on October 2 for the Sprinters Stakes which is included in the Global Sprint Challenge. Shall Chautauqua race and be victorious, an added bonus of $US$1 million would be added to the prize purse.
Chautauqua’s Lightning Stakes and Chairman’s Sprint Prize were part of the series.
“He [Hawkes] even said the Breeders’ Cup,” Legh said.
“You just feel so privileged to be in a position where you can just start talking about those sorts of races, and to be part of them.
“We still think he’s maturing mentally and physically. So we still think the best is still to come from this horse.
“If you look after him, I think long term he could be something quite special – if he isn’t already.”
Sportsbet.com.au have released a market for the Breeders’ Cup Turf without Chautauqua included. European runners Flintshire and Found are the only single-figure runners in the market.
The likes of The Grey Gatsby and Highland Reel ($15 at Sportsbet) are the best of the rest.
Waller lining up big charge for McKell Cup
Punters are used to Chris Waller having multiple runners in big races, but the champion trainer could have up to six runners in this week’s $100,000 Listed McKell Cup at Randwick.
The race was Waller’s first stakes placing, coming with Party Belle in 1999, and his chances of winning the McKell Cup appear strong this Saturday.
Punters can expect to see Defrost My Heart, Murphy’s Delight, Index Linked, Hawkspur, Beyond Thankful and Opinion. European import Opinion is best suited to a wet track, but with the weather being fine in Brisbane, Waller’s only staying chance at Eagle Farm will be Index Linked.
“Index Linked may go to Brisbane, but there is a strong possibility we could have six runners in the race,” Waller said.
Ghisoni likely to miss Doomben 10,000
Punters should all but rule a line through Ghisoni in the Group 1 Doomben 10,000 market as stable rider James McDonald has taken the ride on Delectation.
Trainer John O’Shea admits the race is a tempting option at the weight-for-age scale, but will likely keep Ghisoni against its own sex on Saturday.
Ghisoni was the $6 second favourite at Crownbet, but it has now listed Ghisoni as unlikely and the price has drifted out to $7.
The three-year-old had a gallop at Osbourne Park on Monday morning with O’Shea still undecided about which race it contests.
“My inclination is to not run her [in the 10,000], albeit I know she will be extremely competitive,” O’Shea said.
“It is tempting. The form out of the BTC Cup, where we saw Artlee get beaten on Saturday, does encourage you.”
O’Shea has bigger prizes in mind for Ghisoni and doesn’t want to risk where the filly might end up in 12 months time.
“She has been a filly we have been extremely patient with,” O’Shea said.
“She’s just starting to hit her straps and if we look after her we’re going to have a really nice older mare next season in races up to about 1400m.
“Her last two starts just haven’t gone how we wanted them to.
“Had we won the Arrowfield, we would have had good cause to run in the 10,000.
“At the moment it’s all about seasoning her for later on. For a group one weight-for-age race you want to be well and truly seasoned.”
The classy filly was given a soft trial after finishing an unlucky fifth in the Arrowfield and O’Shea isn’t ruling out a possible start in the 2016 Stradbroke Handicap.
“I think she will be vulnerable first-up off a very soft trial, so that’s why she will have a nice burn around [today],” O’Shea said.
“We will go there on Saturday and see what that brings.”
Azkadellia was a last start winner during The Championships and is the current $3 favourite at Crownbet. Trainer Ciaron Maher was worried about how a possible win would affect its weight for the Stradbroke, but he has guaranteed a start in the Doomben 10,000.
“The aim was always to have her as right as we could for the Straddy and that means having one lead-up run into it,” Maher said.
“At this stage she’s definitely running in the 10,000.”