A six-horse contingent spearheaded by one of New Zealand’s most promising gallopers will be out to make an immediate mark on the Queensland winter carnival after arriving in Brisbane On Thursday.
Most prominent among the Kiwi group is the Queensland Derby prospect Survived, a last-start winner of the Hawkes Bay Gold Cup, who is scheduled to make his Australian debut in Saturday’s Group Three Rough Habit Plate at Doomben.
Trainer John Bary said Survived sealed his trip with a good workout in the clockwise direction last week.
“Plan A for him is to run in Saturday’s Rough Habit Plate at Doomben and then in the Queensland Derby four weeks later,” Bary said.
“The four-week break between races will give him plenty of time to recover from the first-up effort … at this stage he is right where we want him to be for the trip.”
Also on Thursday’s flight will be the Murray Baker-trained pair of Diademe and Ambitious Champion.
They will join their stablemate Unsainity, the winner of the Frank Packer Plate at Randwick last Saturday week.
Baker said the three-year-old had progressed well since and would also run in the Rough Habit Plate.
His ultimate goal is likely to depend on Saturday’s performance, as is that of Ambitious Champion who Baker would like to run in the Queensland Derby if he can pick up enough prizemoney to qualify for the race.
Stablemate Diademe will head toward Group Three Lady Of The Turf Stakes at Doomben on May 25 in the hope of qualifying for the Stradbroke Handicap.
The training partnership of Tony Pike and Mark Donahue is sending its 1000 Guineas runner-up Waterford on the same flight.
She will make her local debut in the Group Three Doomben Roses on May 18 before tackling the Queensland Oaks two weeks later.
Her stablemates Carrick and Chintz will also make the trip to Brisbane this week, the former set to run in Saturday’s Group Three Chairman’s Handicap on the way to a Brisbane Cup start.
Chintz will target some of the three-year-old features on the Queensland provincial circuit.
