Kris Lees has rated Miss Fabulass as “silly odds” for her Royal Randwick resumption – even though he is delighted with her lead-up preparation.Miss Fabulass (Kerrin McEvoy) and El Dorado Dreaming (Hugh Bowman) both begin new campaigns in the Group 2 Light Fingers Stakes (1200m).
As much as $4.50 was offered about Miss Fabulass when betting opened on Monday, and (on Friday) morning she was a $2.70 fixed odds favorite with TAB. El Dorado Dreaming was at $14.
“Miss Fabulass is going terrific, and I’m sure she will run really well,” Lees said.
“But the current odds are silly in a strong renewal of the Light Fingers.
“I would have preferred her to have drawn closer to the fence (she has eight in a field of 11) so that she gets cover and settles.
“If she doesn’t get cover, she has shown previously that she can over-race.
“El Dorado Dreaming is also coming up really well, and she is a Group 1 winner (Sires Produce Stakes at Royal Randwick last year as a two-year-old).
“Whilst 1200m is short of her best, she is definitely capable of being competitive.”
Both fillies will continue on to the Group 1 Surround Stakes (1400m) at Randwick on March 2, and then are likely to take on older mares in the Group 1 Coolmore Classic (1500m) at Rosehill Gardens a fortnight later.
Lees also runs another pair of “girls” – Invincible Gem (Bowman) and Princess Posh (Brett Prebble) – in the Group 3 Triscay Stakes (1200m) against their own, and has a preference for the former.
“Invincible Gem has had the two trials and is resuming in the right type of race,” he said.
“She raced in Group 1 and Group 2 company last spring, and wasn’t far away when fifth in the Empire Rose Stakes (Group 1) at Flemington last November.
“Invincible Gem is proven first-up and also races really well at Randwick. She ran third first-up to Happy Clapper in the Group 1 Canterbury Stakes (1300m) there around this time last year.
“Princess Posh won the Newcastle heat of the Provincial Championships nearly 12 months ago, but is not as forward this time.”
Lees will rely on Our Gravano (McEvoy) in the Benchmark 78 Handicap (2400m), having sent another last-start winner Zip A Dee Doo Dah north to run at Doomben tomorrow.
“It’s not ideal going from 1900m (winning at Canterbury last Friday night) to 2400m, but there wasn’t another suitable race,” he explained.
“Our Gravano got the soft conditions to suit at Canterbury and won’t get that tomorrow, but has won up to 2100m.”
Karavali (Prebble) is Lees’ other Randwick representative, but he feels she will derive benefit from the outing in the Benchmark 88 Handicap (1300m).
– Lees Racing
