Mike Moroney will keep two of the stable’s most promising three-year-olds in Melbourne instead of taking them on the road to Sydney.
Tulsa and Tivaci are nominated for the CS Hayes Stakes at Flemington and the Hobartville Stakes at Rosehill, both over 1400m.
“I would think they will both run down here,” Moroney said.
“I entered them for Sydney just in case they struggled to make the field here.”
Sixteen three-year-olds have been nominated for the C S Hayes Stakes, the maximum field number from the 1400m start at Flemington.
Tivaci, the winner of two of his six starts and placed at Listed level at Flemington, resumed with a strong win at Pakenham on February 4.
Tulsa’s only win came on the Pakenham synthetic surface last August.
He went on to run second in the Guineas Prelude before finishing eighth in the Caulfield Guineas later in the spring.
Moroney said Tulsa had a hard run when a first-up eighth behind Puritan in the Manfred Stakes at Caulfield on February 6.
“He faced the breeze and had a pretty tough run,” Moroney said.
“You’d have to forgive him that after watching what happened to him.”
Ben Melham, who rode the gelding at Caulfield, will ride him again on Saturday with Craig Williams to partner Tivaci.
Moroney has no firm plans for the pair but expects them to head to Sydney at the end of the Melbourne autumn carnival.
Both have been nominated for the Australian Guineas at Flemington on March 5 as well as The Doncaster, the Australian Derby and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick during The Championships.
“I just want to see what they do on Saturday first before we make any set plans,” Moroney said.
