Peter Moody will make his return to Group One racing in the Memsie Stakes at Caulfield where he is planning to have two runners in Gatting and Glenfiddich.
Moody was successful the last time he had a runner in a Group One, which was in March 2016 when he won the William Reid Stakes at Moonee Valley with Flamberge.
He then walked away from the sport but came back to training this year with his first runners in May.
Moody said Gatting was certain to run in the 1400 metre feature and he was weighing up whether to start three-year-old Glenfiddich, or keep him to his own age group in the Group Three McNeil Stakes over 1200 metres.
Glenfiddich has pleased Moody, who described him as “an unbelievable physical specimen”.
As a two-year-old trained by Robbie Griffiths, Glenfiddich had nine starts and won the Mornington Sires’ Produce Stakes and finished second in the Group One Champagne Stakes at his last start at Randwick.
“His best distance range is around 1400 metres to 1600 metres and I’d rather give him a chance to win a Group One with 50.5 kilos, rather than bring him back over 1200 metres,” Moody said.
“He’s also by Fastnet Rock and if he can win a Group One he’s a valuable colt.
“He’s trialled nicely at Pakenham and I was really happy with his exhibition gallop there last week.”
Moody has also been happy with Gatting, who joined his stable in July after his Perth trainer Darren McAuliffe decided it was going to be too hard to supervise him in Victoria with the COVID-19 restrictions.
“Gatting has done extra well. He’s an older horse who is a Group One winner so he knows what to do in his work,” Moody said.
Last year Gatting came across from Perth and won the Makybe Diva Stakes at $101.
“He’s had a few runs in May and June so like last year, he’s got a bit of residual fitness. Whether he goes through to a Cox Plate, he’ll have to be in form,” Moody said.
There were 21 entries for the Memsie Stakes field on Monday, including the P B Lawrence Stakes quinella of Savatiano and Sircconi, along with top mares Arcadia Queen and Mystic Journey.
