Magnifique Soleil made it six wins from seven starts this preparation with victory at Caulfield which may have earned the four-year-old a trip to the Queensland winter carnival.
Trainer Darren Weir said plans were up in the air for Magnifique Soleil who has returned brilliantly after being sidelined for 16 months due to a tendon injury which required stem-cell therapy.
Weir has two or three horses heading to Queensland for the winter carnival including Warrnambool Wangoom Hcp (1200m) runner-up Wealth Princess.
But he said he would also look at taking Magnifique Soleil north.
The four-year-old is prepared at the Warrnambool arm of Weir’s huge team of around 200 horses.
He has 25 horses in work at Warrnambool where the beach can be utilised for horses with leg issues.
“He just pokes around at the beach because he’s got the tendon injury,” Weir said.
“You just keep them in a happy zone, they go to the beach, they swim.”
Ridden by Nick Hall, Magnifique Soleil ($1.80 fav) enjoyed a handy trail fourth in the run in the Gayle Shacklock Hcp (1800m).
He made it four straight scoring by two lengths from Turnitup ($4.40) with Alrouz ($26) two lengths away third.
“He’s going terrific. He showed a bit as a young horse and then he had the tendon injury and it’s been a long road back,” Weir said.
“But the owners have been patient and let us place him where we wanted to early days and we never aimed him too high anyway.
“You keep racing them while they are winning and I don’t think 2000 metres will be a worry.”
Magnifique Soleil, a winner at eight of his 16 starts, was a 1600m Moonee Valley winner as a three-year-old and was runner-up in the Hill Smith Stakes (1800m) at Morphettville and fourth in the Geelong Classic (2200m) before going amiss.
Since returning he has won three times at Warrnambool as well as Donald, Flemington and now Caulfield.
Weir also saddled up two second placegetters at the meeting including The Night’s Hot and Rue Maple.
He sits second on the Victorian trainers’ premiership with 122 winners behind Peter Moody (146 wins).
Weir is equal ninth on the Melbourne premiership table with 18 winners with Moody (69) also leading that race.
