Sirbible will chase a fourth win at Moonee Valley on Saturday
Just on a year ago, trainer Russell Bell made the long haul down from Alice Springs to win a race with Sirbible at Moonee Valley.
On Saturday Sirbible chases a fourth win at the track, this time from a new training base at Colac.
Sirbible won another race at Moonee Valley in early January before heading home after an unplaced run in the Group Two Australia Stakes at the track later that month.
Bell still has his stable and home in Alice Springs, but has moved to Colac with a team of 15 horses.
Sirbible gave Bell his first winner since the move three months ago when successful again at the Valley over 955m on November 11 and fronts up again on Saturday in a 1000m handicap.
Apprentice Jye McNeil, who has ridden Sirbible in his three previous Moonee Valley wins, takes the ride.
Bell says Sirbible, the winner of 11 of his 25 starts, now has a racing brain.
“He’s a much more mature horse and that was evident at Moonee Valley last Friday week with his attitude coming back to scale,” Bell said.
“Finally his brain is really starting to kick into gear and he’s a pleasure to have when he’s like that.
“At other times he can be quite difficult but he’s got a ton of ability and no-one has seen the best of him yet.
“I’ve always said as he got older he would get better and he’s just starting to mature from an ugly duckling into a fair dinkum racehorse.”
Bell believes Sirbible may one day be capable of giving him his biggest race success.
He’s got Sirbible earmarked for the Christmas Stakes, a race he finished third in behind Tuscan Sling at Caulfield last year, before another tilt at the Australia Stakes.
While he is enjoying Victoria, Bell intends to support the Alice Springs carnival in April.
“We’ll still always go up to Alice. We’ve got our stables and our house up there,” Bell said.
“I enjoyed my time in Alice immensely and I learned a lot, but the opportunity came about to come down and go to Colac.”
