The Anthony Cummings-trained Arctic Flight has more to gain than most of her rivals in the $150,000 Darley Crown at Hawkesbury on Saturday.
Arctic Flight is the latest close relation to Black Caviar to make it into Cummings’s stable and the trainer is well aware of the role he has to play in helping her add to her value beyond the racetrack.
“She’s run a lot of fourths and fifths in stakes races and an inch is worth a lot of money to her, given her family,” Cummings said.
Arctic Flight, a three-time Victorian winner, is a daughter of Black Caviar’s grandmother Scandinavia.
She is also a half-sister to Scandiva, the two-year-old Fastnet Rock filly who Cummings trained to Group Two success during the Sydney autumn carnival.
Cummings has settled on the Listed Hawkesbury race over the Silk Stocking at the Gold Coast as Arctic Flight’s preferred weekend assignment.
“I also accepted with her at the Gold Coast but she is only an emergency so she’ll stay in Sydney,” he said.
Arctic Flight made a hit-and-run Brisbane visit for her most recent start when she led until the closing stages in the Juanmo Stakes at Eagle Farm.
“I thought she ran really well in Brisbane,” Cummings said. “She led but that wasn’t the intention … it’s just where she landed.
“She’s got a good constitution and she seems to be getting stronger as she goes along so it won’t surprise me if she takes that next step.”
The Crown field includes three runners from the breeding and racing conglomerate which sponsors the race with Darley trainer Peter Snowden represented by Quidnunc, Aerobatics and Forfeiture.
