Kiss Sum might be first-up in the Silver Eagle, but trainer Tracey Bartley has left no stone unturned in his quest to have the horse fit and ready to fire.
With no grass training tracks available at his home track of Wyong due to renovations, Bartley used a Rosehill barrier trial for the horse’s final gallop on Tuesday with Silver Eagle jockey Kerrin Mcevoy putting Kiss Sum through his paces.
The four-year-old had a quiet hit-out, given he would be racing four days later, but he was strong through the line and Bartley said he would not be lacking on the score of fitness at Randwick.
“He’s ready,” Bartley said.
“It was what I wanted to see. This looks like it will be more like 1400 (metres) on Saturday, not 1300 so we just made sure we were right at the top of our game for Saturday.”
A field of 14 plus four emergencies have accepted for the Silver Eagle (1300m) with the first three across the line all exempt from a ballot on the $10 million Golden Eagle (1500m) at Rosehill on October 29.
Bartley is banking on Kiss Sum snaring one of those spots to ensure his place in the $10 million feature and is buoyed by the prospect of a wet track on Saturday.
Kiss Sum has been placed at his only two starts on heavy ground and with Randwick a soft 7 on Wednesday and more rain forecast, he should get conditions to suit.
“It probably helps us a little bit because it takes the zip out of the other horses and he’s got a good turn of foot when things play out for him,” Bartley said.
“I would imagine they will run along, he will be three parts back hopefully three-deep with cover with not a lot of mud in his face and he can get to the outside.
“I think this horse, when he can get to the outside, is a different horse. He really lets go and we saw that in Brisbane and in the Provincial Championships.”
A brilliant winner of the Gunsynd Classic during the Queensland winter carnival, Kiss Sum has drawn barrier 15 but will jump from 11 if the reserves don’t run.
