An international raid is on the table for talented gelding Fawkner Park with connections eyeing a possible tilt at the Hong Kong Cup in December.
The dual Group 1 placegetter made a disappointing start to his campaign when failing to beat a rival home in the Shannon Stakes (1500m) after assuming a surprisingly prominent position in the run and tiring late.
Co-trainer Rob Archibald was confident the horse could rebound with a more conservative ride in Saturday’s Hill Stakes (1900m) and put himself in the mix for the Hong Kong Cup (2000m) at Sha Tin on December 14.
“The view is to try to get him to Hong Kong,” Archibald said.
“We will see how he is over his next couple of starts.
“He has been a great horse, it just didn’t go to plan first-up. We probably rode him a bit closer than was ideal.
“But second-up we should see some nice improvement back to set weights.”
Fawkner Park boasts some impressive form references, placing behind Via Sistina and Lindermann in the Ranvet Stakes (2000m) in March and twice finishing second to the Cox Plate-bound Antino during the Brisbane winter carnival.
Archibald’s wife and training partner, Annabel, enjoyed a good result in her only previous Hong Kong foray with Law Of Indicies, who was a bold third in the Mile (1600m) in 2022.
Bois D’Argent will also represent the stable in the Hill Stakes at his first start since finishing fourth in the Q22 (2200m) at Eagle Farm in June.
The veteran has performed well fresh in the past and longer term, could work his way towards Western Australia’s middle distance features, including the Northerly Stakes (1800m) at Ascot over the summer.
“His trials have been excellent and I’m looking forward to seeing him kick off,” Rob Archibald said.
“He will take improvement from the run but it’s a good starting point. He will probably head to Perth later in the year.”
Bois D’Argent has already proven himself at the highest level winning the Group 1 Doomben Cup (2000m) last year.
