A Queensland Cup nomination for Caloundra Cup winner Spechenka has been downplayed as an insurance entry only by trainer Ben Ahrens.
Spechenka was the surprise name among 20 horses entered for Saturday’s $150,000 Eagle Farm race over 3200 metres when nominations closed on Monday.
But Ahrens said Spechenka was entered in case the two-time stakes winner made a better-than-expected recovery from his Caloundra Cup victory.
“At this stage I would say it’s pretty unlikely he would start but I’m not ruling it out all together,” Ahrens said.
“Basically we’ve just thrown him in to see what happens.
“If he pulled up extremely well from Saturday’s run it would give me another option but I’m inclined to stick with the original plan and head to the Grafton Cup.”
The $150,000 Grafton Cup (2350m) will be run on Thursday week and Ahrens says the Listed race is a better fit for Spenchenka’s disjointed campaign.
“Asking him to go to 3200 metres might be too much because he got to 2400 metres pretty quickly,” the trainer said.
Spechenka stamped himself as a stayer of the future with his Summer Cup win at Randwick last year but his winter preparation was interrupted by a series of injuries until he threaded his way through the field to beat Gold In Dubai at Caloundra.
“He seems to have come through the run very well but I won’t really know until we get on his back on Tuesday and give him a bit of a gallop,” Ahrens said.
Spechenka is rated to head Queensland Cup weights with Tinsletown, the Mike Moroney-trained stayer who finished on the wrong end of the Caloundra Cup’s three-way finish.
Melbourne mare Persian Star, the John Thompson-trained Run For Layla, New Zealander Smoking Chimneys and the locally-trained Raeburn are among the higher profile Cup nominations hoping to end the winter carnival with a stakes win.
Sixteen entries have been received for the feature sprint – the Listed Ascot Handicap – with Patinack Farm leading the way with three nominations.
Trainer John Thompson has nominated Fairy Gumnut, in-form Metallurgical and Sydney winner Schipper.
As expected, sharp sprinter Essington is among the entries along with Toowoomba star Temple Of Boom.
AAP TURF
