David Hayes may not be the dominant force he once was, but he has been boosted by the entry of three imports into his stable.Hayes has had much success in the past with imports, following a tradition implemented by his father Colin.
Colin Hayes was one of the first trainers to bring international horses to Australia, with horses like Melbourne Cup winners Beldale Ball and At Talaq and Cox Plate winner Almaarad giving him success in his final years as a trainer.
David Hayes has had continuing success with imports, with the likes of Fraar, Jeune, Tawqeet and Azzaam giving him Group 1 glory.
This year, Hayes will be hoping for success with Rebel Soldier, Budai and Tactic.
Rebel Soldier is a promising winner of three of his four starts, including a last start win in the Group 3 Gordon Stakes (2400m).
Third in the Gordon Stakes, Arctic Cosmos, went on to win the time-honoured Group 1 English St Leger (2900m).
Lindsay Park racing manager Darren Lewis says that Rebel Soldier is heading to the Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m).
“At this stage he is heading to the Group 1 C.F. Orr Stakes (1400m) first up,” he said.
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Tactic, an enigmatic horse, has looked both a world beater and a flop in the past year.
Two incredible wins – a fourteen length victory over one time Melbourne Cup runner Munsef and a two length victory in the Curragh Cup (2800m) over Profound Beauty – saw him heavily backed for the Goodwood Cup and the Irish St Leger.
However, he failed in both and was spelled.
Budai is an emerging talent, who has worked his way through the grades.
Although he is yet to win at Group 1 level, he has good form around horses like Hong Kong Cup winner Vision D’Etat and the consistent Cirrus des Aigles.
Lewis says that both horses have settled in well ahead of a traditional Lindsay Park preparation, which will likely consist of one run in the autumn.
Written by Andrew Hawkins
