Mick Price has had to change things up with Prince Of Brooklyn and hopes training the three-year-old at the beach results in a good campaign from the talented colt.
Prince Of Brooklyn races for the first time since last spring in Saturday’s Kane Constructions Handicap (1200m) at Moonee Valley and will be joined at the meeting by his four-year-old brother Duke Of Brunswick who is among the leading chances in the DI Office Design Handicap (1200m).
Prince Of Brooklyn made an impression late in his juvenile season, winning a Group Three race in Adelaide on debut before adding the Elvstroem Classic at Swan Hill.
Price held spring ambitions for the colt, who he says has good ability, last year but he failed to fire in two starts in August and September.
The Caulfield trainer had Prince Of Brooklyn back earlier this year but pulled the pin on a campaign.
The three-year-old is now based at Coronet Bay, south east of Melbourne, where Price has a small number of horses at the property of prominent jumps racing trainer Eric Musgrove.
The colt was moved to help with his persistent tracheal mucus issues.
“He was one horse who couldn’t shake it and I think long-term it does them no good if they’re on antibiotics all the time,” Price said.
“I had him back in (for the autumn) but I couldn’t get him right and the horse definitely was not happy, so we took him to the beach stable where he gets trained out of a paddock during the day.
“He’s been scoping up clean and I expect him to run a nice race.”
The trainer knows Prince Of Brooklyn has the ability but also expects him to improve on whatever he does in Saturday’s race where he also has race-fit stablemate Bassett.
Bassett is at $4.80 with Prince Of Brooklyn rated a $6 chance.
Duke Of Brunswick, a winner of five of his 18 starts with another nine placings, is third-up after a last-start second over 1300m at Sandown.
“You never know, the family might get a double,” he said.
Duke Of Brunswick forms part of a strong book of nine rides for Melbourne premiership-leading jockey Dwayne Dunn.
