Whypeeo in display of speed at Gold Coast
Brilliant three-year-old Whypeeo is no certainty to tackle next month’s Group One Golden Rose despite getting within a whisker of the Gold Coast course record for 1100 metres.
Whypeeo ($2.45) went flat out all the way and was too strong at the finish beating Shogun Sun ($2.70) by a length with the same margin to Italia Bella ($8.50) in the Three-Years-Old Handicap.
The gelding clocked a class record 1:02.31 which was just under a half-second outside the course record of 1:01.74 held by Husson Eagle.
Whypeeo, who cost $200,000 at the Magic Millions Yearling Sale, had bungled the start at his previous run when fourth at Doomben.
But there was no problem on Saturday with Whypeeo bursting out of the gates and running the field into the ground.
Trainer Toby Edmonds is worried Whypeeo might be too brilliant for the Group One Golden Rose (1400m) at Rosehill on September 23.
“This is a good horse but he really likes to get out and go. We will have a good think about it (The Rose) but we have the Magic Millions races as an option,” Edmonds said.
“He picked up $40,000 today towards the Millions and the Golden Rose. There is no urgency.”
Trainer Kelly Schweida was happy with Shogun Sun who was last early in the the race.
“His final sectional was very good and I always felt this race would be too short,” Schweida said.
Shogun Sun now looks certain to press on to a Golden Rose start after the horse he beat at his previous start in Sydney, Addictive Nature, won the Group Three Ming Dynasty at Rosehill on Saturday.
Trainer Stu Kendrick is still considering taking Italia Bella to Sydney and Melbourne in the spring.
“The problem we have she is racing very well without winning and she needs more prize money to make the good fields” Kendrick said.