For more than 40 years, dating back to the Colin Hayes era, Lindsay Park has been a regular visitor to the Perth summer carnival.
Now in the care of David and Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig, Lindsay Park is back again with a small team for 2017.
Sovereign Nation kicks off the stable’s carnival aspirations in the $1 million Group One Railway Stakes (1600m) at Ascot on Saturday.
Dabernig said Sovereign Nation was in peak order but his barrier was a concern with the $14 chance to start from 12 if the emergencies fail to get a start.
Sovereign Nation had solid Group One handicap form in Melbourne during the spring.
He ran fourth to Santa Ana Lane in the Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes at Caulfield before finishing second to Tosen Stardom in the Toorak Handicap.
At his last start he finished seventh to Shillelagh in the Kennedy Mile at Flemington, beating home subsequent Group One Emirates Stakes winner Tosen Stardom.
“His form has been quite good, especially his run in the Toorak,” Dabernig said.
“He’s a horse that jumps a bit slow and naturally gets back a bit so from that gate we’ll just have to cop it on the chin, sit back and hopefully they go hard enough that you can run on up the middle.”
With 53kg, Chris Parnham takes the ride on Saturday, and Dabernig takes heart that the form horses have to give Sovereign Nation weight.
“The ones that have got the form on the board, they’re all up in the weights like Black Heart Bart, Tom Melbourne and Scales Of Justice,” Dabernig said.
“I think on their present form they’re beatable but they’re pretty good on their day if they get the right runs.”
Lindsay Park has Caulfield Cup winner Boom Time competing in Japan on Sunday.
