Trainer Mike Moroney knows Group One winner Tofane (NZ) (Ocean Park) has her work cut out for her in Saturday’s Gr.1 Darley Sprint Classic (1200m) at Flemington on Saturday, but believes she will be more than competitive.
“She’ll need some luck in the run, but she is a Group One horse and good enough to win,” he said.
The mare is one of five runners to come out of the A$15 million The Everest (1200m), where she finished unplaced after pulling up with a breathing issues.
“She ended up with a black eye, a closed eye, the next morning so there was a lot of kick back there and the only thing we can put it down to is that she swallowed some dirt in the run,” Moroney said.
“She does wear a Norton bit and they race with their mouths open slightly and she has probably copped some dirt down the throat because she was making quite a bad noise on pulling up and then all the way back to the parade area which she has never done before.”
That issue was the ultimate decider in bringing her back from Sydney for this race rather than staying on for last Saturday’s Yes Yes Yes Stakes (1300m).
Tofane will wear a tongue tie for the first time this weekend and she’ll also have a new jockey with Melbourne Cup winning hoop, Jye McNeil, picking up the ride with regular ride Dwayne Dunn on the injured list.
