Can Caviar Heights prove to be more than an understudy for high-profile travelling companion Dubai Honour?
Having brought Caviar Heights halfway across the world, William Haggas’ assistant trainer, Isabella Paul, can’t believe the horse’s biggest hurdle at Rosehill will be a top-class galloper from home.
The five-year-old, who made the trip to Australia alongside seasoned traveller and stablemate Dubai Honour, will line up in Saturday’s Neville Sellwood Stakes (2000m), the same race being used as the Australian launchpad for $10 million purchase and last start Group 1 winner, Barnavara.
“That’s going to be tough for us,” Paul said.
“She is a top class filly. But I’m very happy, I don’t think we could have him in a better place.
“It always helps having Dubai Honour down here because he is such a pro.
“The other horse has followed his lead. I’m really happy with where they’re at. They look fantastic in their coats, they are maintaining their weight well, and I’m really looking forward to Saturday.”
While Tancred Stakes contender Dubai Honour is well exposed in Australia, this trip being his third visit to Sydney, Caviar Heights is a lesser known quantity.
Most of his black-type form has been in Listed company in Europe, including a brace of placings for Haggas at that level over the English winter.
Paul says he has been a work in progress as he’s had a tendency “to be a little bit free” in his races and at home, but is starting to turn the corner.
“He led on both those occasions, and – we haven’t talked tactics with the boss yet – but I wonder whether we might just try to drop him in,” she said.
“He probably wants to be fairly handy, but he just has that tendency to slightly over-race. We saw it in his last run last season. He led and he was pestered, and it didn’t suit him at all, and he finished fifth of six.
“Hopefully, if we can just get him to do it the right way, he’s got a big future ahead of him.”
Unusually for a European import, most of Caviar Heights’ form is on good tracks, although he did place in soft conditions early in his career.
Tom Marquand will again team up with both Haggas-trained raiders.
