The 2018 Melbourne Cup Carnival was a frustrating one for Kris Lees, but the Newcastle horseman has not let it put him off targeting feature races at the same venue early in the new year.
Lees confirmed on Tuesday night’s edition of After The Last that classy colt Graff would be set for the two Group 1 sprints at Flemington in the second half of the season – the Black Caviar Lightning and the Newmarket Handicap.
The three-year-old son of Star Witness is back in work, having bypassed Melbourne after his fifth placing in The Everest, and Lees has already formulated a plan aimed at securing Group 1 glory for the stallion prospect.
“I’m thinking Graff will probably come down for the Lightning into the Newmarket,” Lees said.
“We’ll give him a look down the straight and see how he responds in a trial, but that’s the likely scenario for him.”
The $750,000 Black Caviar Lightning (1000m) will be run on February 16 with the $1.25m Newmarket Handicap (1200m) on March 9.
That is seven days before Victoria’s newest race, the $5m All-Star Mile, which was announced on Monday, and Lees endorsed the concept.
“It’s a great initiative. It’s a race in March and we’re talking about it in November, which speaks volumes for what they’re doing down there.”
Lees said the 1600m weight-for-age event would be perfect for Le Romain, who finished second in the G1 Kennedy Mile on Derby Day, having won the same race two years earlier.
“He’s a genuine weight-for-age horse and he’s raced very well at the mile at Flemington, so it’s something we’d very strong consider if he was invited,” he said.
– racing.com
