Trainer Brad Widdup says he’s still on a learning curve with consistent gelding Jedibeel and hopes to tick an important box in Saturday’s Rosehill Bowling Club Handicap (1200m) at Rosehill.
Trainer Brad Widdup (Pic: Bradley Photos).
The four-year-old has won four races from 11 starts but is yet to win beyond the 1100m trip – though to be fair he’s only had two attempts and been placed in both.
Widdup points out Jedibeel was a colt at that stage of his career, and bumped into some progressive gallopers like Karedada and Victory Lane, and is well set up to tackle the trip third-up.
“I’m sure he should run it. Especially from the draw,’’ Widdup said.
“He was a colt last time through and I was treating him like he could run a mile but I worked out that he can’t.
“He’s very genuine, I know he’s a four-year-old and he’s still a brute of a thing but I don’t think the penny’s dropped yet. I’m hoping he should be more than able at 1200m.”
Jedibeel, $6 with TAB on Thursday, won a 1000m dash on the Kensington track first-up on Anzac Day before stepping up 100m and being “blindsided” when runner-up to Dollar Magic in the final race of the Scone carnival two weeks ago.
Widdup said Rachel King followed his instructions a bit too well and, taking nothing away from Dollar Magic, felt it might have cost him the chance to repel the winner’s finish.
“I might have stuffed up there,’’ he said.
“Rachel hadn’t ridden him before and I said ‘hold on as long as you can, he’s got a good sprint but he doesn’t know how to put them away yet’.
“She said ‘I wish I’d have gone earlier’ because that horse blindsided them and she said they just couldn’t pick them up. I‘m not saying we would have beaten the winner but the bird had flown.
“He’s going really well and he’s a Saturday horse every day of the week.”
Alysha Collett has the ride on Jedibeel on Saturday and she’s ridden the gelding twice, coincidentally in both his 1200m attempts.
The Hawkesbury trainer is hopeful promising filly Left Field can have a bit of luck and back up her stakes placing from Scone in the Bisley Workwear Handicap (1100m).
Left Field stepped from a Class 1 win at Newcastle in March to run third behind Commemorative in the Denise’s Joy, producing a big finish from the tail of the field after drawing the outside alley.
Her last 600m of 33.63 (Punter’s Intelligence) was second (by 0.04 seconds) only to the winner’s finishing burst.
She’s again been handed a task with a tricky gate to contend with from the chute start but Widdup has faith in her ability.
“The poor horse can’t draw a gate but she’s going extra well and is in good order,’’ he said.
“She’s a really nice filly, when I first got her I thought she’d run 1400m on her ear and I tried to push her out to it last time in.
“We’ve kept her to short distances this time in and that’s her go. She attacks the line.
“I don’t know if I’ll go too much further through the winter with her. It’d be nice to get a good result before we stop with her but I think she’s going to be a really nice mare.”
– Racing NSW
