Irish trainers Dermot Weld and Willie Mullins have had hurdlers run in the Melbourne Cup with mixed success.
Weld had Vintage Crop win Australia’s greatest race last century while Mullins has been down to Flemington with Vauban and Absurde in the past two years after those geldings went jumping.
Another Irishman, who trains out of Warrnambool, also has Melbourne Cup aspirations with a jumper he thinks can win the Grand National Hurdle but is keen to keep him mixing codes for the time being.
Shane Jackson has taken Loft, the horse he reckons is the smartest he has had anything to do with, to win his only two jumps starts but is now eyeing the Listed Sandown Cup (3200m) on Sunday with the prospects of heading north for the Group 2 Brisbane Cup (3200m) at Eagle Farm on June 14.
Loft came to Australia with high hopes and was favourite for the Melbourne Cup in 2022 only to suffer a tendon injury days out from the race.
After six starts with the Lindsay Park team of Ben, Will and J D Hayes, Loft was transferred to Jackson and had one flat run, finishing last on a dry track in the Ballarat Cup last December before switching to hurdling.
Dual victories came at Warrnambool before Jackson headed to the Melbourne Cup qualifier, the Listed Andrew Ramsden (2800m) at Flemington on May 17 where the gelding had a luckless run and finished fourth.
Along with the Sandown Cup on Sunday’s program are the Australian Steeplechase, the Australian Hurdle and a benchmark 120 hurdle for which Loft was nominated in the latter two.
“He could go to a jumps race at Sandown on Sunday and win, which would be fantastic, but his main aim over jumps this season is the Grand National Hurdle,” Jackson said.
“If he hadn’t of shown the spark he did at Flemington in the Andrew Ramsden, we would have resigned to the fact he was going to be a hurdler.
“But his run in the Andrew Ramsden was massive and arguably if the race had panned out a little better for him, he could have gone close and then we would have been dreaming big.
“I don’t think his flat days are done by any means and I think he can mix codes.
“If I can’t make a champion flat horse out of him, he will be a champion jumper. It would take a good one to beat him over the jumps, but I would love to be able to mix codes with him.”
Jackson said he would be happy to run Loft if the track is in the soft range on Sunday, but if in the good range he is likely to kept at home.
He said he learned his lesson with Loft at Ballarat when the gelding ‘looked after himself’ on a track that was rated a good 3.
If Loft runs on Sunday and performs up to expectation, the gelding can be flown to Brisbane on the Tuesday before the race which will give Jackson the opportunity to see how the weather is.
“If it looks like it will be wet, I can send him, but if it’s going to be dry, I don’t want to send him up not to have a run,” Jackson said.
Jackson will have representation in the two hurdle races with Noonday Gun to run in the Sportsbet Feed Hurdle (3400m) and Highland Blaze in the Australian Hurdle.
“Noonday Gun will run in the benchmark 120 hurdle and after that he will likely get swapped to go steeplechasing with the Grand National in mind and Highland Blaze will go to the Australian Hurdle because he is crying out for the 3900 metres,” Jackson said.
“He’s done no wrong, he’s been brilliant for us, and his aim will also be the Grand National Hurdle then have a little freshen up and have a crack at the Jericho Cup in December.”
