Trainer Liam Howley has been on the hunt for greater distances with his three-year-old gelding Valiant Sun.
The Victoria Restricted three-year-old showpiece over the longest distance takes place this Saturday in the Listed VRC St Leger (2800m) at Flemington, where Valiant Sun will tackle the test.
Valiant Sun faces 16 rivals and has secured the second outermost barrier as he aims for a second victory from eight career outings.
“I’ve always looked at him like he was going to stay a long way,” Howley said.
“He’s lacked that turn of foot but he’s slowly developing a little bit of speed about him.
“He can run time, but he’s got to build through the gears and the whole way through, the Leger has been the main goal.
“If he had shown a bit more speed along the way, maybe he could have been a Derby horse, but I think in his past two runs at a mile-and-a-half, every bit of the trip is important.
“Caulfield last time, he drew well, but the track played against us, but I still thought he ran very well and the bigger track at Flemington should suit him.”
Valiant Sun kicked off this preparation with success over 1600m at Colac back in February, then stretched to 2000m where he ended up tailed off at Pakenham.
Howley wasted no time, advancing Valiant Sun straight to 2400m for a third placing at Bendigo versus seasoned rivals before a fourth at Caulfield on April 11.
“I thought we’d step up quickly rather than go a mile, mile, 2000 metres,” Howley said.
“There weren’t enough options and he’s a natural stayer, so I thought let’s get him out to his comfort zone, and every time we’ve raised the bar, he’s stepped up.”
Howley noted that the tempo of previous races has hindered Valiant Sun, and he anticipates a genuine pace over 2800m at Flemington’s expansive layout.
Should Valiant Sun perform strongly this Saturday, Howley mentioned the gelding might head to Adelaide for the Group 1 South Australian Derby (2500m) at Morphettville the week after.
“He’ll be entered and if he happened to win, we would consider it,” Howley said.
“He’s still quite dumb and doesn’t really know what day of the week it is, and the further the better with him.
“I’m looking forward to next year with him when he’s a bit more mature and those longer races are going to suit him.”
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