Half Yours kicks off winter at Gold Coast

Dual Cups winner Half Yours will take the next step on his winter campaign when he heads to the Gold Coast.

The Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup winner runs in the Group 2 A D Hollindale Stakes (1800m) on Saturday, his second outing since winning the Melbourne Cup last November.

The Tony and Calvin McEvoy-trained galloper had his first run back when finishing ninth to Beiwacht in the All-Aged Stakes (1400m) at Randwick on April 18.

Half Yours headed to the Sunshine Coast soon after to prepare for a three-run campaign in Brisbane, commencing with the Hollindale Stakes on Saturday before the Group 1 Doomben Cup (2000m) and the Group 2 Q22 (2200m) at Eagle Farm.

Calvin McEvoy said Half Yours was in the same barn and box that he was in last year as he prepared for an assault on the Caloundra Cup, which he won in July.

“He went up a couple of days after the All-Aged and got up to the Sunshine Coast and has settled into the location really well,” McEvoy said.

“He’d obviously been there before. He’s on the same training track, the same environment and Tony is up there as well.

“He was there last year and hopefully it is the same result with the horse.

“Hopefully he can find his form, and they look three suitable races for him.

“There’s a bit of rain about, which is good, and it should set him up for a good spring.”

The McEvoy’s have a team of 10-12 horses in Queensland for the winter, and Calvin said the thoughts behind having a team up north was thinking about the spring.

He said Half Yours had had a couple of gallops at the Sunshine Coast and had improved off his first-up run.

“I think you hit the spring with a big advantage when you’ve been out of Victoria during the coldest parts of the winter,” McEvoy said.

“It’s nice to do, but you can’t do it with all horses.

“It’s an expensive way to do it, but I think he’s earned it.”