Lightly-raced gelding Bielski will return to the scene of a last-start success when he chases a first metropolitan victory on Wednesday.
The Matthew Smith-trained Bielski scored at the provincial track of Wyong on January 5 and lines up at Wednesday’s Australian Turf Club meeting at the NSW central coast course in the Mercure Kooindah Resort Handicap (1600m).
Bielski, a four-year-old gelding who will be having just his fourth start, earned a shot in city company when he came from the tail of the field to win a Benchmark 60 over 1350m last start with 60kg on his back.
“I thought it was a really good effort last start,” Smith said.
“Blake (Shinn) was patient at the back of the field and there was good speed on, but he gave them a head start and got over the top of them so it was a good win from a lightly-raced horse.”
Smith said Wednesday’s event fitted in nicely with the gelding’s program and the trainer hopes Bielski can get over even more ground in future.
“He has been quite an immature horse and he’s still quite immature,” Smith said.
“He looks like a horse that could get over a bit of ground and I think if he can run a mile and a quarter (2000m) and a mile and a half (2400m), he might turn out to be a nice horse.”
Smith expects Bielski to improve again from Wednesday’s assignment but believes the son of Rakti can be competitive in the eight-horse field in which the Chris Waller-trained Madam Nash was installed the $2.50 TAB Sportsbet favourite.
Bielski, who’ll have the in-form Shinn aboard, is on the second line of betting at $3.
Meanwhile, the Smith-trained Group One winner Hurtle Myrtle was among 197 nominations released on Tuesday for this year’s $2 million Doncaster Mile to be run at Randwick in April.
Hurtle Myrtle hasn’t raced since claiming Smith’s first Group One as a trainer in the Myer Classic (1600m) at Flemington during Melbourne Cup week.
“She’s in full work and going along nicely,” Smith said of Hurtle Myrtle.
“That race (Doncaster) will be definitely in her program.”
AAP TURF
