Gai's Tip Sheet
SATURDAY 25TH MAY – RANDWICKRail Position: RAIL - +8m 900m-W/Post; +5m RemainderFORMAT (Race 1, 11am, 1200m, S Clipperton, 56kg)Format is delighting us ahead of his first career start. He has made two good impressions in his trials this time in, finishing a close second and third at Randwick. He is holding his condition well, and he's toned up nicely at this stage in his preparation. He’s drawn well in barrier 4, and Sam will be positive from there to get him into a position where he can travel comfortably hopefully on or near the speed. He's debuting in a competitive Saturday grade race and conceding race experience is never easy, but we think he's got good ability and he should relish the 1200 metres so we hope to see him fighting out the finish.MISSY MOOLA (Race 5, 1.20pm, 1400m, A McLucas, 60.5kg)Missy Moola is in fantastic shape ahead of her first start this preparation. She looks super and improved markedly from her first to second trial to win her heat in great fashion against several highly rated rivals at Randwick nine days ago. These trials have given her a good fitness foundation to work from, and 1400 metres promises to be a lovely starting point for her as she might just be rushed off her feet over anything shorter. She’s drawn well in barrier 1 and Amy will look to use this to her advantage to gain a prominent position where she can get into a comfortable rhythm. Amy's additional two kilo claim is a big advantage and whilst we expect her to continue to improve with the benefit of race fitness and as she stretches out over further deeper into the preparation, she is a tenacious mare who always gives her best and we're sure she'll give them all something to run down.CENTENARRIO (Race 6, 1.55pm, 1800m, R Bayliss, 57.5kg)Centenario ran an excellent race first-up at Newcastle when narrowly defeated into second place over a trip short of his best. He was beaten by another three year old who was a very impressive winner of a Midway race at Scone last weekend, and he had several older, more seasoned competitors in behind him which is hard for three year olds to do. As such, he’s clearly got plenty of ability and whilst he rises in grade here to a Benchmark 72 Handicap in town, importantly he reverts to racing against his own age group and steps out in distance to 1800 metres which will play to his strengths as his stamina is assured. Regan will try to go forward from barrier 12 to settle on or near the speed, and whilst it's a competitive race we expect him to be featuring in the finish. INVINCIBLE SPY (Race 6, 1.55pm, 1800m, R King, 59kg)Invincible Spy gave us all a huge thrill when winning so impressively second-up in the Wagga Guineas. He relished the step out in distance to 1600 metres, and settled into a lovely rhythm in the lead before quickening impressively at the top of the straight to win in decisive fashion against some progressive rivals. He’s come through that run in fantastic order and appears to have taken plenty of confidence from it, so he's going into this in a great headspace. Rachel got a brilliant tune out of him in his last time and will be positive from barrier 7 to hopefully get across and gain a favourable position on the rail, or close to it where he can look to set the fractions to suit himself from the front once again. He's stepping up in grade to race in town and there are some talented horses in opposition who have won several races between them, so it's a very strong race for this time of year. Stretching out to 1800 metres is also a step into the unknown, but the way he won at Wagga suggests he'll see it out and he's a very genuine colt who always gives his best so we expect him to be right there at the finish. RISE OF THE MASSES (Race 8, 3.05pm, 1600m, R Bayliss, 55.5kg)Rise Of The Masses gave us all such a thrill first-up to win in tenacious style at Hawkesbury. He got into a lovely rhythm in the lead and battled bravely to the line in the closing stages and simply wouldn’t be denied his share of the spoils. He’s come through the race is great order and he’s made nice progress in his track work since that excellent display, so he's full of confidence at present. He wasn't disgraced in his only previous attempt at 1600 metres at Kembla in November, so we expect the rise in distance to bring about improvement second-up and Regan will be positive from barrier 10 to get him rolling along in to the lead, or close to it. He rises in grade here and takes on several Stakes race performed horses as a result, so it's competitive and won't be easy but he's thriving and hopefully he can land the spoils once again. YOUTH SPIRIT (Race 9, 3.45pm, 2000m, R Bayliss, 60kg)Youth Spirit ran a terrific race first-up at Eagle Farm where he was heartbreakingly pipped in the shadows of the post to be denied his first Australian success. He’s come through the race in wonderful order though, and he appears to have taken plenty of confidence from his tenacious display. He has toned up further ahead of this second-up run, and all he does is stay so we expect the rise in distance to 2000 metres to bring about further improvement. He’s set to carry 60kg which is a big weight, but he’s the joint top weight for a reason and he's capable of defying it. Regan will be positive from barrier 7 to try and dictate the tempo of the race and get him enjoying himself in front, as he seemed to enjoy these tactics last time. This is a very competitive race for the grade, but he’s in terrific order and we hope to see him fighting out the finish once again.HUESCA (Race 10, 4.25pm, 1400m, R Bayliss, 57.5kg)Huesca didn’t handle the very heavy track conditions in his last start at Warwick Farm so you can put a line through that performance. He’s come through that outing in good shape, and whilst he’s deep into a long preparation you wouldn’t know it by looking at him and he's had seventeen days between runs to freshen him up somewhat. We schooled him over the hurdles this week, which is something we often do to alter their routines and to switch them on mentally. It really appeared to have the desired affect with your gelding as he was full of himself afterwards, so hopefully this gives him the winning edge come raceday. He deserves to get himself back into the Winners' Circle after several honest efforts this campaign, and this is an identical grade of race as the one he ran third in two back at Rosehill so he's more than capable. The step up to 1400 metres shouldn't be an issue and he’s hard fit at this stage of his campaign, so if he gets even luck in running from barrier 12 we expect him to be challenging at the finish once again.SILENT IMPACT (Race 10, 4.25pm, 1400m, R King, 59.5kg)Silent Impact ran a terrific race first-up following a long absence and has come through the race in wonderful order. He’s taken plenty of improvement from that display, and the step out in distance to 1400 metres second-up should also play to his strengths. Going a month between runs wasn't the plan but we've kept the work up to him at home so he's plenty fit enough, and it may even be a blessing in disguise as sometimes horses that run well after returning from a long break need a bit longer to get over their exertions. Rachel knows him well and will be positive from barrier 16 to hopefully get across into a more favourable position on or just in behind the speed. This is a very competitive race with not much between the majority of the field on ratings, but is firing on all cylinders and we think it will take a good one to run him down.SATURDAY 25TH MAY – DOOMBENRail Position: RAIL - +2m EntirePOWER BALLARD (Race 3, 12.18pm, 1100m, T Clark, 55kg)Power Ballard is in excellent order ahead of her first start this campaign. She made good improvement from her first to second trial and powered clear of the field to win her heat by a dominant 4.5 lengths in her most recent trial appearance at Wyong. She was terrific last preparation when progressing through her grades to win twice at metro level, and the form of her win at Flemington has worked out very well with the second placed horse Stefi Magnetica subsequently going on to finish second in the Group 1 Surround Stakes at Randwick. There looks to be plenty of pace in the race so Tim will be positive from barrier 9 and let her use her natural speed to her advantage and settle into a position to where she can travel comfortably. She showed great balance and agility to handle the tight turning nature of the track at Canterbury first-up last preparation and the course configuration at Doomben is not too dissimilar, so we expect her to relish the conditions. Whilst we expect her to continue to improve with the benefit of a run under her belt, she’s in great shape and should be very competitive. CLEAN ENERGY (Race 4, 12.53pm, 1200m, A Hyeronimus, 56.5kg)Clean Energy was excellent first-up at Warwick Farm where she showed her quality to win in dominant fashion. Top class horses can win despite the going and she showed her talent to win impressively despite the heavy ground conditions. She’s come through that run in wonderful order and has settled into our base in Queensland extremely well since her arrival last week. We were delighted with her gallop in the lead up to the race and she appears to be firing on all cylinders ahead of this outing. Adam knows her very well and will be positive from barrier 3 to get her rolling along into a forward position where she can travel comfortably. Doomben's quite a tight track but the step up to 1200 metres will be of great benefit to her, and she's got the balance and agility to handle the tight turning nature of the course. She’s in wonderful shape and she's an impeccably bred filly who oozes talent, so we expect her to be hard to beat in her quest to land some valuable Black Type. OSMOSE (Race 7, 2.38pm, 1600m, A Hyeronimus, 57.5kg)Osmose was set a tough task in her last start in Group 2 company when taking on the boys and several seasoned quality stayers in very testing ground conditions, but she was far from disgraced and showed that she can hold her own at that level. She’s come through that run in terrific order and we were delighted with her gallop in the lead up to the race on Tuesday morning. It’s not our usual preference to drop back in trip at this stage in the preparation, but this looks to be a good opportunity to gain further valuable Black Type against her own sex and she’s a tough, versatile mare who is capable of handling it. Adam will be positive from barrier 8 to try and take luck out of the equation, and whilst this is a competitive race she has been mixing it with the best of them all campaign and we expect her to be challenging at the finish once again.AMAZONIAN LASS (Race 8, 3.17pm, 2000m, A Hyeronimus, 56.5kg)Amazonian Lass gave us all such a thrill when winning so impressively in her most recent outing at the Sunshine Coast. She got into a lovely rhythm in behind the speed and when she was asked to go and win her race at the top of the straight, she showed a great turn of foot to surge past her rivals and register a dominant win. She’s come through that run in wonderful order and she is thriving in the Queensland sunshine. She’s got a great appetite, her coat looks terrific, and we couldn’t be happier with how she is training at this stage in the campaign. She rises in grade to Group 2 level here, but she's won at this grade and distance before so we expect the step up to 2000 metres third-up to bring about further improvement. Barrier 15 is tricky but Adam knows her well and as he did with her last time, he will look to get her into a position where she can travel comfortably and get into a good rhythm. This is another very competitive race but she's extremely talented, and we expect her to be hard to beat yet again.NEW ENDEAVOUR (Race 9, 3.57pm, 2000m, C Williams, 59kg)New Endeavour ran a terrific race seven days ago where he was heartbreakingly pipped in the shadows of the post. He’s a tough gelding who has come through the run in great shape, so we're happy for him to take his chance here. Craig is a top-class jockey who knows how to win at Doomben, and your gelding has drawn well in barrier 4 so he'll likely settle towards the head of affairs where he can hopefully get into a nice flowing rhythm and travel comfortably. As you would expect for this grade and the money on offer, it is an extremely competitive race and he's got a bit to find on the ratings. However, he's coming into it off the back of his best run this preparation and he’s a talented import who deserves to take his chance, so we hope to see him in it for a long way and challenging at the finish. SERPENTINE (Race 9, 3.57pm, 2000m, T Clark, 59kg)Serpentine is in excellent shape ahead of tomorrow's Group 1 contest. He’s come through his trial at Warwick Farm in fantastic order and he is a picture of health at present. He’s still full of confidence off the back of a brilliant autumn preparation, and we were delighted with his gallop on Tuesday morning. He’s handled the trip to Queensland extremely well and has settled seamlessly into our base at Eagle Farm where he's been before. Tim knows him very well and will be positive from his wide draw in barrier 16 to hopefully get across and slot into a more favourable position close to the rail where he can travel sweetly and look to set the fractions to suit himself. It's a competitive race as you'd expect for the grade and the money on offer, but he seems to thrive over 2000 metres and we know he loves a battle so it will take a good one to get past him. SURF DANCER (Race 10, 4.30pm, 1350m, A Hyeronimus, 57.5kg)Surf Dancer looks super ahead of his first start this campaign and he has been progressing nicely since his most recent trial at Randwick nine days ago. He has three trials under his belt this time in and these trials have given him a good base level of fitness to work from ahead of this reappearance. We were delighted with his latest trial and the blinkers really switched him on, so he retains them for raceday. He’s settled into our base at Eagle Farm extremely well and has been enjoying the warmer climate since his arrival. He’s a course and distance winner after winning this race last year, albeit second-up with the benefit of a run but at least we know he goes well at this unique venue. Adam will be positive from barrier 3 and let him land in a position where he can travel comfortably. There's plenty of early pressure in the race on paper so he may have to settle a pair or two back in the run, and whilst we expect him to continue to improve with race fitness and as he stretches out over further this campaign we hope to see him staying on strongly at the finish to hopefully go back-to-back in this valuable Group 3 contest.
