Smooth Chino goes into the $5 million Quokka at Ascot on Saturday as a six-time winner from seven career starts.
The Indianna Weinert trained gelding has drawn barrier number eleven for the big race.
“I think I’m ok with it,” said trainer Indianna Weinert when reflecting on the pros and cons of drawing barrier number eleven in the thirteen horse field, before finding a positive angle on the challenge facing the son of Maschino from the wide draw.
“Obviously, Jigsaw drew outside of us. He’s got a lot of gate speed … so, how it looks is we’ll follow him into the race. We can keep out of trouble out there and we’ll be behind the best horse, so I’m sure he can carry us into the race.
“He (Smooth Chino) was fresh last time. Lucy (Fiore) dug him up out the gates and he sort of over-raced a bit … but that’s ok … he needed that hard hit-out coming into a race like the Quokka, so it actually worked out ok.”
The four-year-old has come a long way since he won a Maiden at Barker on debut, just fifteen months ago.
“He did everything wrong in that race at Mount Barker and still won,” continued Weinert. “we just kept stepping him up and we are her at the Quokka now and he has just matured in every way. I can’t fault him.”
The Indianna Weinert trained chestnut won three out of three starts in his first preparation with that run of success culminating in a solid win in the $250 000 Magic Millions WA 3YO Trophy over 1200m at Pinjarra. That she achieved that from the number twelve barrier draw added further merit to the victory.
After a nine-and-a-half break from race action, Smooth Chino resumed and handed out a repeat dose to his opposition, again winning three in a row in a second perfect preparation which, this time, concluded with a win in the $125 000 Listed Black Hart Bart Stakes over 1200m at Ascot.
Smooth Chino was then given another break … for three-and-a-half months.
She was asked to take the step up to Group 3 company first-up in the Roma Cup where, while he did taste defeat for the first time at the hands of fellow Quokka contender Rope Them In, Smooth Cino lost no followers when producing a strong performance to claim a runner-up finish, just 0.27 lengths behind the winner … who he will meet in the Quokka on the same weight terms.
Mark Zahra takes over the ride from high-flying apprentice Lucy Fiore.
Smooth Chino is currently an $11 chance with bookmakers on the fifth line of betting which, interestingly enough, is a $10 shorter quote than the $21 being offered about the chances of Rope Them In, the horse that beat Smooth Chino last time out … the price indicating the improvement Smooth Chino might be expected to make second-up.
