A positive push from top jockey Kerrin Mcevoy has convinced connections of Arctic Glamour to roll the dice and run the backmarker in the Group 1 Tattersall’s Tiara at Eagle Farm.
Co-trainer Sterling Alexiou admitted he was lukewarm on pressing onto Saturday’s 1400m feature after Arctic Glamour finished down the track in the Dane Ripper Stakes (1300m) last start but McEvoy convinced them her performance was better than it appeared.
“I gave Kerrin every option not to run her there and he thought we’d be crazy not to,” Alexiou said.
“He was happy to stick with her.
“He thought there was quite a bit of merit to her run the other day on a track where you couldn’t make much ground.”
It was also Arctic Glamour’s first appearance since March and Alexiou said she would take significant benefit from the run.
While the four-year-old hasn’t won since claiming the scalp of Joliestar at Listed level over 18 months ago, she has been placed in a trio of Group 2 races, including last year’s Golden Pendant over the Tattersall’s Tiara journey.
“She is a long time between wins but she has got an abundance of ability on her day and a race like that wouldn’t be beyond her if things fell her way,” Alexiou said.
The stable will also be represented at Eagle Farm by General Salute in the W J Healy Stakes (1200m).
A brilliant winner at Group 3 level during the Sydney autumn, he was put on ice due to a minor injury setback but subsequently trialled nicely and Alexiou predicted he would be a “major player”.
“He was an acceptor over the carnival and he had a bit of filling in a joint on race morning and we had to back off him,” he said.
“A couple of other races just came around too quickly for him and this looked an ideal race to get him ready for.
“He appears to have freshened up well and I was happy with his trial. He looked to go to the line with a lot in hand.”
