Trainer Michael Freedman has not dismissed the idea of testing Ninja over a mile again in the future, however, his current focus is on shorter races as he eyes a potential shot at The Everest.
The four-year-old gelding is set to resume in a competitive field for the Group 2 Missile Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on Saturday. This marks his first appearance since finishing unplaced in the Randwick Guineas (1600m).
Freedman believes that Ninja’s previous unplaced run was a combination of reaching the end of his preparation and being stretched in distance. He indicated that the horse would likely be kept to shorter assignments for the time being.
“I’m not ruling out one day trying him back over the mile, but his form to this point suggests he’s very effective at 1200 to 1400, so we might be smarter keeping him in and around those distances for the time being,” Freedman stated.
“Like most trainers and owners with sprinting type horses, you’d love to see if he could measure up and get himself a spot in an Everest later in the spring. But there’s a hell of a lot of water to go under the bridge between now and then.
“But that’s a race that would be in the back of my mind for him if he was going well enough. A Golden Eagle would be worth a look to given it’s restricted to four-year-olds.”
Ninja, who clinched the Hobartville Stakes (1400m) in February, impressed with a decisive victory in a Randwick trial last month.
Freedman is pleased with the horse’s physical and mental development since the autumn. The Missile Stakes will serve as a valuable indicator of his capabilities against strong contenders like Group 1 placegetters Angel Capital and Napoleonic.
“He’s just more mature and a stronger four-year-old now,” Freedman commented.
“As a younger horse, he was somewhat mentally fragile. But he’s been gelded as a young horse and that trip away (to Queensland in the summer), like is does with a lot of horses, did him the world of good. He came back a lot more seasoned.
“His autumn ‘prep’ stopped reasonably early, and that enabled him to have a long spell and a long build-up. So while he’s up and about relatively early in the spring, he hasn’t sacrificed any time off to do that.
“Hopefully we get him off to the races on Saturday and see where we get to later in the spring.”
The field for Sydney’s inaugural stakes race of the 2026-27 season comprises eight runners. It is spearheaded by the triple Group 1 placegetter Angel Capital, who finished sixth behind Ka Ying Rising in last year’s Everest (1200m).
Punters looking for early racing odds can find competitive markets on Australian betting sites.