Three-year-old Cambourne has kept his undefeated record intact, and the possibility of a start in next month’s Caulfield Guineas alive, with an easy win at Bendigo.
Co-trainer Mick Price stamped him as a “black-type horse coming soon” after he toyed with his rivals to win Wednesday’s 1300m race.
Price’s dilemma is how to get Cambourne into the Caulfield Guineas field.
The meeting at Bendigo carried prize money equivalent to a midweek metropolitan program but Price doubted whether that would be enough to get him into a Group One race.
His other option is to run him in Saturday week’s Caulfield Guineas Prelude over 1400m for three-year-old colts and geldings.
However, Price mused that starting him again in ten days could be too soon for the inexperienced colt.
“He’s a lovely horse with a great temperament and the more racing the better for him. He’s going to make a beautiful 1600-metre horse,” Price said.
Cambourne is by Redoute’s Choice who won the 1999 Caulfield Guineas.
Price and co-trainer Michael Kent Junior made it a double at Bendigo when Shotmaker won the following race.
Trainer Tony Noonan will also give his colt Hickok every chance to get into next month’s 2020 Caulfield Guineas after he broke his maiden in exciting fashion.
Hickok, ridden by Noonan’s son Jake, sat out the back and swooped home to win the 1100 metre race at his first run since April when he had two starts for a second at Bendigo and a fifth at Geelong.
Noonan said if Hickok could continue through the grades he would be happy to put him on a Guineas path.
Hickok’s sire Shooting To Win also won the 2014 Caulfield Guineas.
“He got back a bit further than planned. We think he’s a horse who is going to be a miler so that’s why he went back as he’s a lovely big colt and we knew he would hit the line strongly,” Tony Noonan said.
“He’s got improvement to come and if he can keep winning we’ll see how we go. Hopefully he’s good enough.”
