Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott are set to unleash six runners at Rosehill Gardens this Saturday, with five of them competing in stakes races. Notably, four of these contenders are three-year-olds aiming to solidify their spring campaigns.
The hopes for Plagiarism and Revengeance in the prestigious Golden Rose will be tested in the Run To The Rose (1200m). Meanwhile, I’m Ya Huckleberry has an opportunity to press his claims for that race with a strong performance in the Ming Dynasty Quality Handicap (1400m).
Their stablemate Savagram will also contest the Ming Dynasty. As a half-brother to Derby victor Major Beel, Savagram is being considered for a potential tilt at the Spring Champion Stakes (2000m).
I’m Ya Huckleberry makes his return to the three-year-old features after an interruption due to a fetlock injury, which followed his debut second place in the Breeders’ Plate (1000m) last spring. He successfully broke his maiden status at Wyong last month, and Bott is eager to see him race on the more expansive Rosehill track.
“He’s a big striding horse, so the bigger track will be more suitable for him, and getting out to 1400 metres,” Bott remarked. “The thought process is he’s got that natural speed and being able to sustain that over 1400 metres, 1600 metres as opposed to 1200 is going to be what hopefully separates him when he can get to a good level.”
The step up in distance is also anticipated to benefit Savagram. He finished fourth in his last start behind Plagiarism in the Up And Coming Stakes (1300m), a run where Bott felt his lack of experience was evident.
Plagiarism will be aiming for a repeat of that performance in the Run To The Rose (1200m), where he is expected to possess a fitness advantage over several of the other prominent contenders. “He’s gone to the Run To The Rose for that reason. He’s pretty conditioned for a tougher race like that, particularly with where he’s at in this ‘prep’ having had two runs over 1300 metres and dropping back to 1200,” Bott explained. “Traditionally, it’s the main lead-up to the Golden Rose and he certainly put himself in contention at his last start. We wanted to give him that chance.”
Bott also advised caution regarding Revengeance, who showed signs of fatigue in the closing stages of the San Domenico Stakes (1200m) upon his return from a significant break. While he anticipates improvement from the colt following Saturday’s run, he has not abandoned the possibility of targeting the Group 1 feature in two weeks. “I still don’t think it’s necessarily the right race (on Saturday) yet, but it’s the right stepping stone to get back,” Bott stated. “If we need to readjust after this we can, but at this stage he’s on a path to the Golden Rose.”
Stardom completes Tulloch Lodge’s line-up of black-type hopefuls in Sydney, competing in the Sheraco Stakes (1200m). She aims to demonstrate that her narrow second place in the Toy Show Quality (1100m) was not a fluke. Despite starting at double-figure odds in that race, Bott indicated her performance was not a surprise to the stable, and she has continued to progress well. “She used to be in a bit of a rush, but she is harnessing things much better,” he said. “She’s got to improve again off that personal best, but I’m really happy with her. She’s going great.”
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