Star filly Yankee Rose has been given an easy barrier trial at the Sunshine Coast ahead of an ambitious spring campaign.
Yankee Rose, who won the Group One ATC Sires’ Produce Stakes at Randwick in the autumn, was beaten about eight lengths into fourth place in Tuesday’s 850m-trial won by her stablemate Shamfranciso.
Michael Cahill made the trip from the Gold Coast to ride Yankee Rose and let her coast along throughout.
The filly is now trained out of Caloundra by David Vandyke who moved his stables north from Warwick Farm in April.
Vandyke’s racing manager Alan Thomas said Yankee Rose’s performance in the trial had been what was expected.
“David also has the trial winner which is a real flyer. They ran 33.25 for the final 600 metres and David didn’t want Yankee Rose having a gut buster chasing that sort of pace,” Thomas said.
“He wanted her to have a hit-out and work home which is what she did. Yankee Rose will probably have another trial in a couple of weeks and then head to Sydney.”
Yankee Rose could run in the Group Two Run For The Rose at Rosehill on August 27 and then head to the Group One Golden Rose also at Rosehill a fortnight later.
The other option is to give her a barrier trial in Sydney and go to the Golden Rose first-up and then the Flight Stakes.
Plans include the Group One Cox Plate at Moonee Valley where she will be trying to be the first three-year-old filly since Surround in 1976 to win the weight-for-age championship.
Yankee Rose has been one of racing’s fairytale stories as she cost $10,000 but has won more than $1.5 million prize money.
