Tim Clark has enjoyed an outstanding start to the new season with a brace of feature race wins and he is hoping Swift Witness can continue his spring form surge.
The Ms Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained filly was responsible for delivering Clark’s first black-type success of the season in the Silver Shadow Stakes before stablemate In The Congo followed suit in last weekend’s San Domenico Stakes.
He has booted home 11 winners from his past 50 rides, including a double at Hawkesbury on Tuesday, laying a solid platform for the major carnival races ahead.
“It has been a good month. It’s a good time of the year to be trying to build a bit of momentum coming into the spring and there are some nice horses due to return in the next few weeks so there’s a bit to look forward to,” Clark said.
Swift Witness will bid to make a clean sweep of the first two races in the four-leg Princess series when she contests Saturday’s Group 2 Furious Stakes (1200m) at Randwick.
A fatal fall in the straight took some gloss off her first-up win with several of Saturday’s rivals caught up in the backwash, but Clark says it was no fluke, rather a credit to her ability to make her own luck.
“That’s the beauty of Gai and Adrian’s horses, the majority of them make their own luck on speed and when races are a bit muddling or a bit messy, they are generally up out of all the trouble,” Clark said.
“But in saying that, she showed really good fight when she was challenged and if anything, she was coming away from them on the line.
“She was unlucky not to win a Group Two last prep, so she deserved to get a good win next to her name and obviously she has come back in good order.”
Following two early scratchings, a field of 14 will tackle the Furious, including Silver Shadow placegetter Four Moves Ahead, along with Jamaea (fourth) and Mallory (fifth) who both endured luckless runs.
Najmaty brings a different formline into the race after flashing home from last for a sensational first-up fourth in the Quezette Stakes at Caulfield last month.
Despite the depth of opposition, Clark is adamant Swift Witness can hold her own and be even better at the back-end of the series in the Tea Rose (1400m) and Flight Stakes (1600m).
“She’s staying at the 1200 next time but I’m looking forward to when she does step out over the 1400 in the Tea Rose and hopefully she can see out a strong mile i
