Alligator Blood remains in Golden Slipper contention after maintaining his unbeaten record on Saturday but jockey Jeff Lloyd thinks he might be better at long trips.
Alligator Blood ($2.60) made it two wins from two starts when he beat Royalist ($16) by a length in the $125,000 2YO Classic (1200m) at the Sunshine Coast.
Trainer David Vandyke, who was at the New Zealand yearling sales, has two horses in the 2019 Golden Slipper nominations in Alligator Blood and Iamican, who will make her debut next Saturday.
Stable foreman Emma Lehmann said Alligator Blood’s next run would be determined when Vandyke returned from the Karaka Sales.
“He is a lovely horse who just keep stepping up and David has a high opinion of him,” she said.
Alligator Blood cost $50,000 as a yearling and is by All Too Hard out of Lake Superior, a daughter of Encosta De Lago, indicating he will get at least 1600m.
Lloyd said Alligator Blood would be better at 1400m to 1600m.
“I don’t know about the Golden Slipper but he might make a Sires Produce–Champagne Stakes type horse,” Lloyd said.
“He is an improving type so I will leave those things to David.”
The heavily backed Stampe ($1.90) raced on the pace but folded to finish fifth.
Jockey Mark Du Plessis said he had been wayward in the straight and might have had enough this campaign.
