Chris Waller is hoping for a bit of luck when Joliestar lines up in Saturday’s Group 1 Newmarket Handicap (1200m) at Flemington.
The Group 1 Thousand Guineas (1600m)-winning filly returns to Victoria for the first time since her Group 1 success in November 2023, with Waller targeting the straight-track sprint to break a run of unlucky performances.
“She just needs a bit of confidence and a bit of luck, so we thought bringing her down to Flemington to run in the Newmarket would be a good idea,” Waller said.
“She is certainly good enough in our opinion. Obviously, it’s a different style of racing, but one that she should adapt to.”
Joliestar resumed with a third-place finish in the Group 2 Expressway Stakes (1200m) after being posted wide and was unlucky in her last two runs during the spring, finishing seventh in both The Everest (1200m) and the Golden Eagle (1500m).
By Zoustar, who won the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m) down the Flemington straight, the four-year-old mare had a familiarisation gallop at the track last Friday with Damian Lane in the saddle.
“We love to give our horses an experience down the straight because there are so many great races here at Flemington or even overseas if we want to travel,” Waller said.
Joliestar will be joined in the Newmarket by stablemate Gatsby’s, with the three-year-old being scratched from last Saturday’s $1 million Inglis Sprint (1200m) to be saved for the Group 1.
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