From Adam Duggan
Horse: Diamond Diesel
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 7, Takeover Target Stakes) Diamond Diesel is a wet-track specialist that likes it more the heavier it gets. On heavy tracks he has had three starts for two wins and a 4th. I would imagine if there’s more rain it will get into the heavy range. And I’d much prefer it to be a Heavy 10 on Saturday. I entered him for the race with the likelihood of a really wet track at Gosford thinking he’ll be suited on his home track on a really testing surface. Now it’s at Newcastle I’d still like the rain to come for sure and that would enhance his chances. He’d be better than most horses on a heavy track. If it was a good track I may not have run him, but the likelihood of a really wet track was appealing. He’s a really fit horse so I’m hoping it’s a testing surface at Newcastle. He also has a terrific record at Newcastle, where he has had two starts for a win and a 2nd. It’s probably not the strongest Takeover Target I’ve ever seen, but it’s still a bit of a jump. But he won in Saturday grade in the city at his last start so it’s sort of a natural progression when there’s not many races around to suit. From barrier seven we’ll definitely be positive, hopefully one off and about three back, something like that, and then we’ll see what he can do.
From Team Snowden
Horse: Tashi
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 7, Takeover Target Stakes) While Tashi has always shown ability, the four-year-old has gone to a new level this preparation winning two of her first three starts and finishing runner-up to subsequent T J Smith Sakes winner Chain Of Lightning in the Birthday Card Stakes. She is fully matured now and she looks well and she is racing well. Even last start she got too far back but ran on really well and wasn’t beaten far. She is drawn out a bit on Saturday, but it might be the better place to be on the soft ground and she doesn’t mind soft ground, she has been on it five times for two wins and two seconds.
Horse: Devil’s Throat
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 7, Takeover Target Stakes) Three of his five wins have been on rain-affected tracks. His first-up run was OK because he had no luck. He had nowhere to go and it was a roughhouse race, he got bounced around like a ping pong ball. But he likes this going, he’s drawn to get a good run and the distance suits him perfectly. He is not without some hope, but Tashi is definitely the bet of the two.
From Matthew Smith
Horse: Esti Feny
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 6, Gosford Gold Cup) Esti Feny initially raced in Europe and won six races there, finally broke through for its first Australian win in last year’s Gosford Gold Cup. The Gosford Gold Cup is a really good race and gee we’d love to win it again. Fair to say he’s going better this year than what he was last year, so no reason why he can’t do it again. He came back from Melbourne in great shape, so we decided to go to Gosford and he should run a very good race. He’s a nice horse and he’s always worked like a nice horse, but we’ve had to be patient and put up with a few injuries here and there. The owners have been super-patient and we’ve got him going good again now. Jay Ford rode Esti Feny when it won last year’s cup and will ride him again on Saturday.
From Gerald Ryan & Sterling Alexiou
Horse: Williamsburg
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 8, The Coast) Williamsburg is a three-time stakes winner on heavy ground. Williamsburg hasn’t been near a properly soft track in ages. The last time he ran on one, he finished 2nd in the Festival Stakes. The horse is going quite well at home, and he is nicely weighted. Williamsburg missed a few runs here and there when he didn’t make the field for races, so he might have been a little bit behind in his fitness. I am happy with where his fitness is at now and if he runs to his best, he can run really well.
From Kris Lees
Horse: Tavi Time
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 8, The Coast) Tavi Time was trained by Gwenda Markwell when it ran 6th of 13 in a 2YO Maiden on a Heavy 8 track at Kembla Grange on July 16, 2022. I didn’t have him when he raced on the heavy, but he’s got very good soft-track form and I’m going there believing he’ll handle the heavy. He’s bred to handle it, being by Tavistock. They generally get through it pretty well. He’s got a nice barrier (gate 5) so he should get a nice run either midfield or just forward of that. He’s still learning race manners so it helps that it won’t be a full field around him. He should run well. In the horse’s defence we’ve kept him at 1400 metres for three runs now this preparation and to be fair he’s looking for further ground now. He’ll get that opportunity with a month between runs going up to the mile.
From Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott
Horse: Goldman
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 6, Gosford Gold Cup) Goldman failed to fire in four spring appearances, so we sent him for a lengthy spell and started again. In hindsight, that (first) preparation just had us on the back foot and with that, we elected to skip the autumn because that was going to be another quick turnaround. We decided to get him right, give him a good break and focus on the backend of the autumn and mainly the winter with him. I think that call has done him the world of good. Goldman appeared back to his best when resuming with a game 2nd to two-time Doomben Cup winner Huetor in the JRA Plate (2000m) last month on a wet track. He is in good shape and he’s exactly where we want him. We’ve just got to take him through his classes and go through the right races with him and look after him.
Horse: Sir Lucan
Message: (Saturday, Newcastle Race 6, Gosford Gold Cup) The rain-affected track and distance rise will be in his favour. He’ll enjoy it, and he’ll improve off that first-up run. He may stick through the winter Cups races (in Sydney). If he continues to improve sharply, Queensland has been left open, but he has to prove himself here first to go up there.
From The Editor
Sydney Race 1 – Imperial Force
Sydney Race 6 – Future History
Sydney Race 8 – Iknowastar
