Chris Waller won’t be drawn into labelling his current crop of two-year-olds as his best yet but there is no doubting the premier trainer has some exciting prospects.
He has already won the Breeders’ Plate and Magic Millions Classic with Shaquero, while She’s All Class took out the Wyong Magic Millions feature.
Last weekend he unveiled Home Affairs, who just failed to score on debut at Rosehill but shapes as another promising youngster.
While most trainers measure the success of their two-year-old season by wins, Waller takes a different view.
He says the true test will come down to the group’s longevity.
“It’s hard to quantify. Winx was a pretty good two-year-old, she won two races. The Autumn Sun was unbeaten at two,” Waller said.
“A good two-year-old season is where you win a few good races but you train them at three as well.”
Sydney’s dominant trainer for the past decade, Waller has played only minor roles in the major juvenile races to date.
He takes a patient approach, regardless of a horse’s age, and says that has not changed.
If his babies are winning better races, it is on raw ability.
“It’s simply that. We haven’t changed anything, they’re not wound up. They are just going through their well-educated systems and they will keep improving,” Waller said.
His philosophy is reflected in the fact he will saddle up 13 horses at Randwick on Saturday but only one of them, Conexy, is a two-year-old.
He does not have a runner in the $2 million Inglis Millennium, nor in either of the Blue Diamond Preludes in Melbourne.
Conexy will contest the Listed Lonhro Plate (1000m) after being scratched from Rosehill last week due to a weight penalty.
“He had a three kilo penalty. I didn’t think it was fair running him,” Waller said.
“It was done on prize money which I haven’t seen before.
“He will run (on Saturday)and it is a more suitable race.”
Conexy has started twice, finishing second on debut at Doomben before breaking his maiden at the same venue in November.
Hugh Bowman has the ride from barrier one.
