Hawkesbury trainer Brad Widdup, fresh off securing his second consecutive trainers’ premiership, is set to saddle up his in-form mare Satono Jasmine for a bid to extend her winning streak to four at Randwick.
The filly is stepping up to Saturday company for the B & K Group Australia Handicap (1800m), coming off a remarkable hat-trick of victories in provincial and midweek races. Widdup expressed his surprise at the mare’s rapid progression in just her second preparation.
“If you’d asked me if I’d thought she’d get to Saturday grade this time around, I would have said, ‘no’,” Widdup stated. “She has done a really good job.”
He continued, “I was half thinking about putting her in the paddock after last start, but it’s a fillies and mares race over 1800 on a Saturday worth $160,000. You’ve got to have a crack. She’s in really good order, so fingers crossed she can run well again.”
Satono Jasmine achieved consecutive wins at Gosford and Hawkesbury by a combined margin exceeding eight lengths, both on tracks with affected ground. However, any notion of her being solely a wet-track performer was dispelled when she triumphed on a good surface at Warwick Farm most recently.
A consistent factor in her victories has been the distance – all have been over a mile. Widdup is eager to test her over a longer trip on Saturday before granting her a well-deserved spell.
“I’ve wanted to push her out over further and she’s found a fillies and mares’ (benchmark) 78 on a Saturday, so we’ll see what happens,” he remarked.
Adding to Satono Jasmine’s impressive run of form is the fact that Brad Widdup Racing is one of her two co-owners. Her connections also previously raced her half-sister, Pro Velocity, whose most notable achievement in 17 starts was a 2100m victory at Newcastle’s Beaumont track.
“That makes it a bit better too. We had Pro Velocity, the sister and didn’t have much luck, so this one is repaying that. Fingers crossed she can keep going on with it.”
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