Trainer Bjorn Baker is confident Arapaho is going well enough this autumn to be a genuine chance of becoming a dual winner of the Group 1 Tancred Stakes at Rosehill.
Arapaho won the Tancred two years ago and the eight-year-old is set for another crack at the 2400m weight-for-age staying feature on Saturday, having missed last year’s renewal.
The gelding will be striving to join former racetrack stars Tie The Knot and Octagonal as a two-time winner of the Tancred, with Tie The Knot winning back-to-back in 1999 and 2000 while Octagonal was successful as a three-year-old in 1996 and won the race again the following year.
Arapaho was narrowly beaten by expected Tancred rival Vauban in a small field in the Group 3 Sky High Stakes (2000m) at his most recent start on March 15 at Rosehill, having performed creditably over shorter distances when fifth in both the Apollo Stakes (1400m) and Verry Elleegant Stakes (1600m) earlier this autumn.
Baker is looking forward to stepping Arapaho back up to 2400m on Saturday.
“He’s going great,” Baker said.
“Of course, he won the race two years ago.
“His runs this preparation have been outstanding, it’s hard to think he’s not going better than ever.
“The 2400 metres suits, he looks good and I think he definitely goes in a really good chance.
“We know he excels at 2400 metres, that’s probably his best distance.
“So I think with a bigger field and more tempo on, it will suit him.”
Along with his 2023 Tancred win, Arapaho is also a winner of the Group 2 Zipping Classic over 2400m in Melbourne last spring while another of the import’s nine career wins came in a Listed Grafton Cup in 2022 over 2350m.
Baker believes the gelding has been building towards a peak performance this autumn.
“And his work since (his last start) has been very good,” the trainer said.
“So we’re very, very happy with him.”
Jockey Rachel King is set to continue her association with Arapaho in Saturday’s race.
The William Haggas-trained UK visitor Dubai Honour is favourite in an early pre-nominations market for the Tancred Stakes at $2.80 ahead of Vauban ($3.50), with Arapaho at $6 with online betting sites.
Dubai Honour won the Group 1 Ranvet Stakes (2000m) and Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) double in Sydney during the 2023 autumn carnival.
The Tancred is one of two Group 1 races on Saturday’s Rosehill program along with the Vinery Stud Stakes (2000m) for three-year-old fillies.
