Gazetted horseman John McNair is confident thoroughbred hulk Hay List will be fit enough to return in Saturday’s Challenge Stakes at Warwick Farm.
A multiple group 1 winner and four time runner-up to the freak Black Caviar at the elite level Hay List sizzled around the Gosford course proper on Tuesday morning.
Jockey Glyn Schofield made yet another trip up the F3 from Sydney to partner Hay List which appears to have once again beaten the odds.
“He galloped over 600m and went pretty hard,” McNair said shortly after the gallop.
“I was happy enough with him and so was Glyn, that’s all we can go on. Glyn can’t knock him.
“I said to Glyn, ‘I don’t want to start him if he can’t win’, and he replied ‘every piece of work he has done suggests he could win.”
After fracturing the left side knee after yet another life saving operation Hay List was found to have “a pulse and heat” in the near side hind leg last weekend.
“We’ve been poulticing it every day and I’ll be putting another one on shortly,” McNair said.
“Since we started applying the poultice there has been significant improvement and as long as it keeps going that way he’ll be running on Saturday.
“I would have like it to be over 1100m and not 1000m. They’ll jump and run, no time to think, I’d rather he be allowed to get into his rhythm.”
Hay List is weighing in at around 610 kilograms and McNair said “I’d like to have got another couple of kilos off him” while adding Glyn reckons he is not carrying as much bulk as he usually does”.
“A slight mystery there but we can say the knee is good,” McNair said.
A wet track and Hay List will not be heading to Warwick Farm for McNair has had enough of the turbulent weather of recent months.
It has led to McNair using plenty of poultices on his team housed on his private Central Coast training complex.
One like Mighty Obvious which runs in the final event at Canterbury on Wednesday.
“With all this wet weather horses are getting abcesses in plenty of different stables,”McNair said.
“Mighty Obvious, we’ve been dealing with foot problems as well. He bruised the near front a few weeks ago and we’re poulticing it at the moment but he is ready to go.
“I’ve booked Jenny Duggan, he is an easy horse to ride, he likes to lead and with her 3kg claim he comes into it pretty well.
“Last time he went to Canterbury he won a Saturday class race and he is ready to win a mid-weeker.”
By Craig Young
