There is no shortage of options for Australia’s best short-course horses this weekend and Sydney trainer Matthew Smith is keen to take advantage of that with his best two 1000-metre horses.
Headwall will get the chance to defend his Concorde Stakes crown at Randwick, while Smith’s preference is to send Way To The Stars to Melbourne for the Moir Stakes.
But his place in the $750,000 Group 1 at Sandown is weather-dependent.
Way To The Stars won a 1045m trial at Randwick last Friday, which followed unplaced runs in the July Sprint (1100m) and Missile Stakes (1200m) and Smith is hoping that race fitness comes to the fore on Saturday.
“We had a plan with him, give him an 11 and 12 (hundred-metre race) get him as fit as we could and send him down there and see what happens,” Smith said.
“We might catch some of those out first-up, but he’d need to get the right track condition.
“He’ll probably go if it’s not too wet.”
Way To The Stars, a son of Reward For Effort, has won twice and placed a further three times from 10 starts on Soft tracks but has recorded six of his eight wins on Good tracks.
Sandown was a Soft 7 on Monday morning and while no significant rain is predicted for Melbourne this week, there is a chance of showers each day from Tuesday through until raceday.
Fine conditions are expected in Sydney all week and Smith is excited about seeing Headwall back at the races for the first time since his win over Lady Shenandoah in last year’s $1 million Concorde Stakes, which will this year be run at Group 2 level for the first time.
The seven-year-old suffered a pastern injury soon after, which had him paddock-bound last spring, but has had a long build-up to his return and caught the eye in two trials during August.
“It’s going to be a really good race, but he’s going as good as what he was last year going into the race and he’s been in work for a while, he’s fit and well,” Smith said.
