Scott Aspery has no qualms about a quick back-up for Resurrect and he is willing to do it again if the horse goes well at Rosehill.
After winning three consecutive metropolitan races, Resurrect ran fourth over 2000 metres at Randwick last Saturday.
He runs in Saturday’s TAB Plate (1900m) as a precursor to a start in the Gosford Cup on January 9 but his trainer says he could still contest the Summer Cup on Boxing Day.
“He came through his last race better than I expected,” Aspery said. “He got pocketed and then ran home with his last 400 (metres) the fastest in the race on a soft track which I was worried about.
“His three wins in November were within 18 days so he has backed up quickly before.
“The Summer Cup entries have been extended until Monday so we will see what happens and will probably make a late nomination.
“He is pretty athletic for a big horse with a massive frame.”
Resurrect weighs in at around 600kg making him one of the biggest horses in training.
He is the TAB’s early favourite for his Rosehill assignment with senior jockey Glyn Schofield replacing apprentice Lester Grace.
“He had 61 kilos last time so we took the claim. Lester rode him well but he really needs a stronger rider so Glyn is back on,” Aspery said.
Schofield rode Resurrect to wins at Canterbury and Randwick’s Kensington last month.
Aspery’s main objective with Resurrect is to get his rating up so he is eligible for stakes races next year.
“The summer campaign has been a process to get his benchmark up so that when he is ready for the bigger races, he is not struggling to get a start,” he said.
While Resurrect failed to make it four wins in a row, Vashka will be aiming to do just that when he runs over 1500m at Rosehill.
The Godolphin four-year-old has drawn one of the widest barriers but his jockey Black Shinn is not concerned.
“I don’t see that as a disadvantage because it’s a long back straight at Rosehill so I can take my time to roll across,” Shinn said.
“He will probably lead or sit outside the leader so I won’t have to be in a rush, I can just let him get in a rhythm and give himself every chance.”
