Consistent stayer Hawk Island finds himself in rarefied company in Saturday’s Ranvet Stakes but trainer Chris Waller believes he can hold his own.
Melbourne Cup runner-up Maluckyday, Caulfield Cup winner Descarado and Group One winners Zavite, Sacred Choice and Keep The Peace along with imported stayer Illustrious Blue make up the field for the 2000m Group One at Rosehill.
Hawk Island is a last-start winner of the Parramatta Cup (2000m) in February, his sixth win over the distance.
“He’s up against it but he will fight, we know that,” Waller said.
“He ran a good fifth in the Metropolitan in the spring so you never know.”
Maluckyday is the $1.70 TAB Sportsbet favourite to score his first Group One victory.
He was an eye-catching fourth in the Group One Chipping Norton Stakes (1600m) won by Danleigh last Saturday week.
Jim Cassidy returns from a short suspension to renew his association with Maluckyday who is raced by Nick Moraitis and trained by the Hawkes team.
The Gai Waterhouse-trained Descarado was not far behind Maluckyday in the Chipping Norton and will be out to give the trainer her eighth victory in the race.
He is at $3.60 ahead of Sacred Choice ($8) and Keep The Peace ($9).
Keep The Peace arrived in Sydney from Auckland on Monday night and will be ridden by New Zealand’s leading jockey James McDonald.
Trainer Shaune Ritchie will give the mare two starts in Sydney in preparation for a tilt at the QEII Cup in Hong Kong next month.
Keep The Peace is part-owned by former champion Australian jockey Mick Dittman and beat Wall Street to win the Group One Haunui Farm Classic (1600m) last start.
AAP TURF
