Having been retired and then failing to get in foal, Steinem is set to make her reappearance on the racetrack at Caulfield.
The Group 3 Victoria Handicap (1400m) on Saturday will be the daughter of Frankel’s first outing since November 2023 when eighth behind Deny Knowledge in the Group 2 Matriarch Stakes (2000m) at Flemington.
Her best performance came in the Group 2 Peter Young Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield earlier that year when she accounted for Melbourne Cup winner Gold Trip.
Now owned by Yulong Investments, Steinem is back in the care of original trainer Ciaron Maher.
Assistant-trainer Jack Turnbull said the plan was to try and get Steinem up to Brisbane during the winter in a bid to enhance her page before another attempt at stud.
“I would say, and this is without speaking to Yulong recently, that she would then try and get in foal again,” Turnbull said.
“She’s in good health and by the time the breeding season comes around, hopefully she will be at her peak to get into foal.”
Despite the extended period away from the Cranbourne stable from where Steinem is prepared, Turnbull said you would not know the mare had ever left.
Although Turnbull did say she was quite a bit heavier upon her return than when she left.
“She had been retired, so we had to go through the processes of getting her re-instated to race, and she came back looking like she was in foal,” Turnbull said.
“It’s great to have her back. She is the same horse as when she left. Her mannerisms are the same, even in trackwork.
“She’s a class horse and we just hope that she can recapture some of the form she had when she was racing.”
Stablemate Chorlton Lane will also line-up for the Maher team, coming off a short break having not raced since finishing fourth to Rise At Dawn in the Listed The Elms handicap (1400m) at Flemington on February 15.
A winner in Canberra in November, Chorlton Lane made his way south to finish third in The Supernova at Pakenham, followed by Stakes race placings at Sandown and Caulfield in January and February.
“He was in good form. He ran a huge race in The Supernova and was running well without winning, so we thought we would give him a breather,” Turnbull said.
“He carries good residual fitness. He’s only had the one jump-out and we didn’t have to put a lot of work into him.
“He’s a little pro and doesn’t need a lot of playing about and is always around the mark.”
