After a deliberately quiet start to the year, Victoria’s powerhouse Emma Stewart and Clayton Tonkin stable is getting serious again.
The Cardigan barn has two of the key runners in Saturday night’s $200,000 Group 1 NSW Oaks at Menangle along with two of the favourites in Melton’s feature, the $30,000 Melton Plate.
But it is what’s coming that underlines their strength after 15 runners for seven wins across the trials at Bendigo on Monday night and Melton yesterday (Tuesday).
“We’re starting to get a lot of good ones back now and you’ll see our numbers grow a lot in the next few weeks,” Stewart said.
At Menangle, Stewart said little separates their two Oaks finalists Willows Girl ($4.60, gate five) and Arrhythmia (nine, $2.50).
“It’ll be interesting which way Cam (Hart, driver) goes with his choice … maybe Willows Girl? Bailey McDonough will drive the other one,” she said.
At Melton, Bay Of Biscay and War Dan Buddy will continue their preparations for July’s Brisbane Inter Dominion series in the small but select Melton Plate.
Mark Pitt will drive Chariots of Fire and TAB Eureka winner Bay Of Biscay (gate six) with Ryan Sanderson on War Dan Buddy from barrier four.
“Bay Of Biscay had longer out than planned with a hoof abscess, but he seems well and it’s all about building him up for Brisbane,” Stewart said.
“With our slower start to the season, we’re looking to have a big crack at Brisbane in winter. We’ll have horses for the Oaks, Derby, Protostar, Inter Dominion trotting and pacing,” Stewart said.
Their Inter Dominion trotting hopeful is Susan Is Her Name, the only trotter to have beaten champion mare Keayang Zahara in a race, which she did 12 months ago in the Group 1 Macarthur Mile at Menangle.
“She wasn’t quite right after the race so we gave her a spell, but couldn’t find anything serious. There was a hot spot there, maybe it was a stress fracture?” Stewart said.
“She’s been working well at home for a while and won her trial (at Melton) well (Tuesday).
“She’s ready to race now, maybe next week or the week after.
“We’ll aim her towards the Inter Dominion because she’s owned in Brisbane.”
Susan Is Her Name looked sharp in the trial, sitting behind another star mare Gatesys Gem and dashing past her late to win by 3.1m in a 1min56.2sec mile rate for 1720m, including slick closing splits of 56.6 and 28.6sec.
The news isn’t as encouraging with sidelines star Always Hot, who hasn’t raced since stretching his unbeaten record to eight with victory in the Group 1 NSW Derby on March 8, last year.
“He’s out again. He’s his own worst enemy. If there’s trouble, he’ll find it,” Stewart said. “He got his leg right over a fence a while back and although he didn’t damage the tendon, it kept swelling when we last had him in work.”
PHOTO: Club Menangle/Pacepix
