Yellow Jersey shared a workout with Half Yours at Sandown on Saturday, a session Calvin McEvoy felt held a certain parallel given both horses are on the cusp of their spring campaigns.
Last year, Half Yours provided McEvoy and his father Tony with a taste of the pressure that accompanies major carnival events, and it’s this same level of expectation the team hopes to achieve with Yellow Jersey.
The McEvoys harbour Cox Plate ambitions for their costly import, who is set to make his return in this Saturday’s $200,000 Listed Heatherlie Handicap at Caulfield.
“He’s very untapped and he comes with a very big profile, which comes with pressure, I think,” Calvin McEvoy remarked.
“He cost a lot of money and the horse needs to come out and perform.
“Imports don’t always do that, but I believe that we’ve seen enough from him that has shown us that he’s a really good horse.
“He needs to go to the races and perform and I’m hoping that he can be another headline horse for us.”
The 1700-metre Heatherlie Handicap will mark only the sixth start for Yellow Jersey. He secured his first three victories in France, followed by a second-place finish over 2200m at Group 2 level before his relocation to Australia.
His sole appearance in Australia thus far was a close second in the Listed Wayne Wilson Stakes (1600m) at Eagle Farm on June 13.
The McEvoys considered entering Yellow Jersey for the Group 1 Memsie Stakes (1400m), but opted to protect his rating and preserve future options, especially since he is also nominated for the Caulfield Cup, a Group 1 handicap over 2400m for which the weights are still to be announced.
“If he were to run sharp in that sort of race, there’s a chance he’d get eight to 10 (ratings) points and we thought that was a low percentage play,” Calvin explained.
Yellow Jersey held a slight advantage over Half Yours at the conclusion of their track gallop on Saturday. This workout was part of a preparation designed for a start in the Makybe Diva Stakes, a race won last year by the Caulfield/Melbourne Cups champion.
“He was a little bit fresh in behind, travelled very strongly and couldn’t have worked any nicer,” McEvoy commented on Half Yours’ performance.
“He had a healthy blow, he gets one more trial this coming Friday and then goes into the Makybe Diva Stakes first-up.
“He’s exactly where you want him to be.”
The $750,000 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) is scheduled to take place at Flemington on September 12.
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