Chris Waller has quashed talk of an Everest appetiser between Nature Strip and Eduardo in the Concorde Stakes, confirming he will wait for another day to kick off the champion sprinter’s spring.
While Eduardo is on track to resume in the 1000m scamper at Randwick next Saturday, Waller said the race wouldn’t be the right starting point for Nature Strip.
The Everest title holder has thrived since returning from his Royal Ascot heroics, leading to rumours the stable might be tempted to throw in a nomination for the Concorde, but Waller says that is “unlikely”.
“He is ready to go, but it has never been our intention to run this Saturday,” Waller said.
“If he ran next week, he would have to run again in two weeks and then four weeks.
“He is good fresh and is better with four weeks between runs.”
Nature Strip is instead likely to kick off in The Shorts (1100m) at Randwick on September 17, which will give him almost a month to freshen up for his Everest title defence.
Eduardo beat Nature Strip in The Shorts last year before finishing third to the speedster in the Everest, but trainer Joe Pride is adopting a different approach this time around.
Whereas Eduardo was coming off a winter carnival preparation in Queensland 12 months ago, this year he heads into the spring having not raced since his runner-up finish in the T J Smith Stakes in April, prompting Pride to kick his campaign off earlier.
“It’s an extra run because he’s had a longer time off,” Pride said.
“I can’t wait to get him back to the races.”
The Group 2 Chelmsford Stakes (1600m) will headline five black-type races at Randwick next Saturday, along with the Tramway Stakes (1400m) which features the return of star galloper Zaaki.
