Former Northern Territory speedster The Soldier has recovered from a setback and will run in Saturday’s Red Tempo Handicap at Flemington.
The eight-year-old was to have his second start for Caulfield trainer Byron Cozamanis in the race won by Canali at Caulfield last Saturday week.
“He had a high temperature but he seems pretty good now,” Cozamanis said of the gelding who was formerly trained in Alice Springs by Ken Rogerson.
“I don’t know what it was. He was good at 7.30 on the morning of the race but he was no good at 11 o’clock.”
The Soldier has been prepared for most of his career by Rogerson who has won 22 races with the sprinter who has had 44 starts for more than $320,000 prize money.
He is a short course specialist having won 19 of his 28 starts at the 1000m range.
Rogerson brought him to Melbourne last spring when he had two starts at Moonee Valley for a fifth to Waltzes over 955m and a ninth to the same horse over 1000m.
At his first start for Cozamanis he led and was runner-up to Definitely Ready over 955m at the Valley when he resumed on October 28.
“He’s a good old horse. Kenny didn’t want to stay down with him this year,” Cozamanis said.
“He sent him to Adelaide to do some work on the water walker before he came to me.”
The Soldier’s wins have all been at Pioneer Park in Alice Springs and at Fannie Bay in Darwin and it will be a new experience for him going down the Flemington straight 1000m course for the first time.
“It’s going to be interesting but I think he’ll like the straight,” Cozamanis said.
“He’s a very fast horse and I think it will suit him.”
There were 22 entries for the Red Tempo including another prolific winner in Periduki who has been transferred from South Australian trainer Mick Whittle to Cranbourne-based Todd Balfour.
Periduki has won 19 of his 51 starts and just under $460,000 in prizemoney.
But the seven-year-old gelding has virtually been weighted out of sprint races in Adelaide after winning five of his nine starts there since returning from a stint with Whittle’s daughter Lisa Lefoe in the Northern Territory.
Darwin trainer Stephen Brown has Canali nominated while Brendan McCarthy has entered dual stakes winner Zedi Knight.
AAP TURF
