Startantes offered ticket into The Invitation
Fresh off her win in last Saturday’s Group 1 Tattersall’s Tiara (1400m), Startantes has been offered the first ticket into the second running of The Invitation in the Sydney spring.
The three-year-old by Star Turn was a deserving Group 1 winner to finish the 2021/22 racing season after multiple placings at the top level in Sydney, so Rob Heathcote will give her a good spell over the next few weeks.
Despite suggesting that a light spring and a trip to Melbourne would be on the cards for Startantes, the invite to run in the $2 million race in Sydney was too good to refuse.
Startantes raced in the inaugural running of The Invitation over 1400m last year, but she failed to beat a runner home following a long and arduous campaign.
It will be a little different this time around, though, with Heathcote looking to go into the race third-up.
Following a run in The Shorts (September 17) over 1100m, Startantes is expected to line up in the Silver Eagle (1300m) three weeks later at Randwick.
All going well, the $891,500 earner will run in The Invitation on October 22 at Randwick, after which she could back up seven days later in the $10 million Golden Eagle (1500m) at Rosehill Gardens, or head to Melbourne for the Group 1 Empire Rose Stakes (1600m) – a race where she would be eligible for a $1 million bonus should she reign supreme.
Startantes is currently a $26 chance with online bookmakers to win the 2022 Golden Eagle on October 29.