Kim Heaven is expected to measure up to Sydney’s top fillies but whether that happens as soon as Saturday remains to be seen.
The talented Bart Cummings-trained three-year-old is being thrown in at the deep end in the Group Two Surround Stakes (1400m) at Warwick Farm at just her second race start.
Stable foreman James Cummings said their hand had been forced by a lack of other suitable races for the Canterbury debut winner.
Kim Heaven opened at $51 with TAB Sportsbet on Wednesday and has continued to tighten to $17 in the past 48 hours.
“We’ve made the point this week that our hand has been forced a bit by the programming of three-year-old fillies races,” Cummings Jnr said.
“We put her in the Surround after she won her maiden, we were very happy with her run but she’s very much in the deep end at that sort of intensity on Saturday.
“You would have to think she’ll take a lot of benefit out of this at the top level.”
Kim Heaven, a daughter of Shamardal, made her debut under lights at Canterbury on February 18 and finished off strongly as the $1.90 favourite to defeat Darya Ye Noor by half a length with another 3-1/4 lengths to Timarete.
Hugh Bowman, who rode the filly in her two trials this preparation and also at Canterbury, will be aboard in the Surround against proven stakes performers More Strawberries, Parables and Red Tracer.
“She was excellent (on debut), there was a lot asked of her,” Cummings said.
“She paraded as though the 10 O’clock start on a Friday night at Canterbury did upset her a bit. She still hit the line very well and there’s no doubt there’s a bit of improvement coming out of that.
“We’ve done what we can and I think she’s quite well prepared for this race.”
The Gai Waterhouse-trained More Strawberries is the Surround Stakes favourite, dropping back to take on her own age after her first-up third against older mares in the Listed Triscay Stakes (1200m) two weeks ago.
More Strawberries was scratched from her scheduled return in the Light Fingers Stakes three weeks ago on race eve with a nasal discharge, forcing Waterhouse to run the filly a week later with topweight of 57kg in the Triscay.
She finished third to stablemate Kiss From A Rose and drops back to set weight conditions in the Surround.
AAP TURF
