On a day when the $5 million Quokka takes centre stage in Perth, last year’s winner of Western Australia’s richest race, Joker’s Grin, will be having his first, much anticipated run since relocating to the Chris Waller stable when he goes out to contest the Group 3 Hall Mark Stakes over 1200m at Randwick.
Joker’s Grin is currently the favourite for his assignment on Saturday but, far from being welcomed with open arms, Joker’s Grin can expect something of a baptism of fire with trainer Joe Pride, in particular, presiding over something akin to a ‘welcome to Sydney’ committee.
Pride will saddle four runners in the Hall Mark Stakes, bringing Joker’s Grin … who has raced thirteen times … up against two battle hardened veterans in Private Eye and Mazu as well as two emerging runners in King’s Secret and Kerguelen.
While you wouldn’t expect there is too much improvement to come from Private Eye (who will be having his fiftieth start) and Mazu (who is going into his forty-sixth start) as an eight-year-old and a seven-year-old respectively, an argument can be made that they can both hold a level of performance good enough to be competitive here.
Private Eye, a $12 million earner whose career is filled with top class results, will be first-up on Saturday. He has won five out of twelve starts first-up so, while the 1200m trip will be short of his best, the warning is there for all when Private Eye races fresh.
In his three starts in this preparation, Mazu has finished third in the Group 2 Challenge Stakes and third in the Group 1 Galaxy … finishing less than a quarter-of-length behind the winner on both occasions … before finishing in sixth place in the Group 1 T J Smith.
Sixth place, but Mazu came home only 2.30 lengths behind the winner Joliestar in the T J Smith. The other horses who finished in front of him that day … and not by far … were Giga Kick, Skybird, Overpass and Jimmysstar, who Mazu finished right alongside.
Being surrounded by that quality speaks to the merit of Mazu’s performance that day.
And then there are Pride’s two other runners.
King’s Secret is a six time winner from thirteen starts. Kerguelen is a six time winner from fifteen starts. They have some way to go to get to the level achieved by their stable companions, Private Eye and Mazu, but they are clearly building reputations of their own and either one of them could step it up notch here without surprising anyone.
So, Pride has loaded up in the Hall Mark … and, of course, there are another five runners in the field whose challenges Joker’s Grin will have to deal with if he is to make his east coast debut a winning one.
That doesn’t mean he can’t do it. It means he is unlikely to have it easy.
And let’s not forget trainer Bernie Miller, who will probably be watching proceedings from across the country.
Miller was the trainer of Joker’s Grin before the decision was taken for the son of Maschino to change states and change trainers.
Miller took Joker’s Grin to nine wins … and two runner-up finishes … from thirteen starts, a training performance for which he can take a bow.
Now a new chapter is about to unfold.
