Wexford Stables took home the major spoils at Tauranga on Saturday, and this weekend, they will venture further afield with class three-year-old Checkmate contesting the Group 1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m) in Sydney.
Checkmate has impressed in his first racing campaign, winning three races including the Listed Armacup 3YO Stakes (1500m). The son of Mongolian Khan was selected by trainers Lance O’Sullivan and Andrew Scott to represent Wexford in the $3.5 million NZB Kiwi (1500m), and after settling beautifully in the running, he flashed home into third behind Damask Rose and Evaporate.
Delighted with the Kiwi performance, O’Sullivan and Scott turned their focus to Saturday’s feature, with the gelding set to fly across the Tasman on Monday afternoon.
“He flies out this afternoon and he’ll head to Randwick, where Ashley Handley will be looking after him for the week there,” Scott said.
“We had hopes that he may head this way, and he just pulled up so well from the Kiwi and performed very well in that race.
“The team is really excited, we let him do a bit of work here this morning (Monday) and he worked particularly well. We’re going over there with good levels of confidence that he will race well, but we’re under no illusion that it is a high level of racing.
“It will be interesting to see how he runs out the 2000m, that is another factor for next season if he can run out the distance. That gives him some other options at four.
“We are so looking forward to it.”
Godolphin colt Broadsiding currently tops the market with horse racing bookmakers for the Rosehill Guineas at $2.50, with Checkmate in the sixth line of betting at $15. Also featuring prominently are fellow Kiwi-bred three-year-olds Feroce ($11) and Aeliana ($13).
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