It’s A Dundeel could kick start his Spring campaign in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) on August 31 with trainer Murray Baker keen to enhance the colt’s stud value in the newly promoted Caulfield feature.
With his main aim the Group 1 Sportingbet Cox Plate (2040m) in October, for which he is currently rated the $4.20 favourite with the corporate bookmakers, Baker said the son of High Chaparral would resume in either the Memsie or the Group 1 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington a week later.
Baker said It’s A Dundeel would be nominated for the BMW Caulfield Cup (2400m), but at this stage he was leaning towards a Group 1 weight for age campaign leading into his grand final in the Cox Plate.
“He’ll resume in either the Memsie or the Makybe Diva and then he’ll go to the Underwood Stakes (1800m) at Caulfield, the Yalumba Stakes (2000m) and the Cox Plate,” Baker said.
“With the Memsie now a Group 1 it certainly influenced our decision, being a colt if he could win a Group 1 over 1400 it would be great for his future prospects at stud.
“I won the Memsie in 1990 with The Phantom and it would be great to win it again, especially now that it’s a Group 1.”
Baker said It’s A Dundeel has been back in work at his Cambridge stable for around four weeks and had really developed physically during his spell.
Though the horse is better known for his performances over further ground, Baker pointed to the fact that It’s A Dundeel’s wasn’t wearing blinkers during first up fourth behind Pierro in the Group 2 Hobartville Stakes (1400m) at Rosehill.
“He ran a real beauty in the Hobartville and he was rocketing home but he didn’t have the blinkers on,” he said.
“He also won over a similar distance (1350m) at his first start in Australia at Wyong as a three-year-old and he has obviously been a much sharper horse since we put the blinkers on him.”
As well as It’s A Dundeel, Baker is also planning to bring the lightly-raced Orion, a son of O’Reilly who came from last to win his debut in a two-year-old maiden over 1200 metres at Te Rapa in March, to Melbourne in August.
Though he said it was too early to pinpoint set races,Baker said he was hopeful that Orion could measure up to the Group 1 AAMI Victoria Derby (2500m) in Novemeber, a race Baker won with Lion Tamer 2010.
“We’ll just take it slowly with him and hope that he can measure up over in Melbourne,” he said.
“You never know with these horses, he’s pretty stoutly bred on the dam side and while I’m not saying that he is anywhere near as good as horses like It’s A Dundeel or Lion Tamer, you have to bring these types over to Australia to see how they’ll go.”
Source : Racing Victoria
