Gawler trainers Gary and Nichole Searle and Brianna Callanan have three local Cups in mind for Sir Kingsford.
A dream to maybe run in the Melbourne Cup has been shelved for South Australian galloper Sir Kingsford who will instead concentrate on Cup races at home.
After finishing second in the Port Adelaide Cup at Morphettville in May, Sir Kingsford crossed the border to run in the Andrew Ramsden (2800m) at Flemington which provided the winner a ballot exemption into the Melbourne Cup.
Sir Kingsford failed to stay and the decision by trainers Gary and Nichole Searle and Brianna Callanan has been made to keep the gelding to a maximum of 2000m this time in.
“It found him out,” Gary Searle said of the 2800m trip.
“I always had my doubts, because he’s got that little bit of brilliance about him and you have to let him roll a bit.
“I didn’t go there last year after he won the Port Adelaide Cup because I had doubts, but this year, the owner said, ‘let’s find out’ so we did.”
Sir Kingsford starts his ‘spring’ a little earlier this year in the Listed Leon Macdonald Stakes (1400m) at Morphettville Park on Saturday.
It leads into the Listed Balaklava Cup (1600m) on September 16, the Listed Murray Bridge Cup (1600m) on October 3 and the Listed John Letts Cup (1800m) at Morphettville on Melbourne Cup Day.
They were three races Sir Kingsford contested last year, although there was trip to Melbourne for the JRA Cup at Moonee Valley, a track he failed to handle.
If all goes to plan, then Sir Kingsford could cross the border again for a tilt at the Listed Ballarat Cup (2000m) in December.
“We put him out after Flemington, he had a month in the paddock and then a couple of weeks of doing a bit of equestrian work,” Searle said.
“He was bouncing, so we thought we would bring him in.
“We’ll run him in this, which he will probably need, but in saying that, he has a bit of a spring in his step, the old fella, so I don’t think he will disgrace himself.
“After this, we’ll go to the Balaklava Cup, the Murray Bridge Cup and the John Letts Cup.
“We went through that last year. We ran third in the Murray Bridge Cup and second to Air Assault in the John Letts Cup.
“Air Assault has got the wood on us up to 1800 (metres), but maybe he might end up in Melbourne this year.
“He’s going to running in races that are going to be short of his best, but I’ll treat him a bit different this prep as I won’t be getting out past 2000 metres.
“We’ll keep him nice and fresh and train him more as a sprinter.”
Searle said Saturday’s race contains most of the likely runners in the Balaklava Cup, a race Sir Kingsford ran in first-up last year.
He said if Sir Kingsford headed to Ballarat in December there was time to follow a similar autumn path as earlier this year.
“We could have a freshen up and have a go at the Oakbank Cup again and the Port Adelaide Cup again and just go down that path,” Searle said.
“It’s just so hard with these horses in South Australia with their rating.
“They go up quick, and you get stuck there.”
