Light Infantry’s jockey Jamie Spencer has issued a warning to Saturday’s Golden Eagle field – we wouldn’t be here if we thought we were wasting our time.
The star Irish hoop has no shortage of confidence in his $3.90 favourite with Ladbrokes for the $10 million feature over 1500m, despite the fact he has not raced on a turn track in his five-start career.
Spencer believes he will thrive at Rosehill after a very impressive second in the Group 1 Haras de Fresnay over a mile at Deauville last start on August 14, John and Thady Gosden’s three-year-old Inspiral winning by a length.
“We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t feel we were bringing the right horse,” Spencer said after a trackwork session at Canterbury Park on Tuesday morning.
“He always feels good. He’s a ball of energy and he’s a very happy horse.
“So he’s easy to deal with and he’s got more mature as time has gone on.
“He’s nice to be around.”
Spencer said he was impressed with Light Infantry’s trackwork session where he did not see a reason to push him too hard.
“We work further in Europe, so I just let him do what he wanted to, and then let him have a good stretch down the straight and open up his lungs,” he said.
“The old saying – if he’s not fit coming here, there’s no point coming.
“So it was no reason to have a gut-wrenching gallop.”
While acknowledging his first run on a turn track will present a challenge, Spencer believes Light Infantry has the temperament to adapt to new conditions on Saturday.
“Obviously, he’s a high-class horse and he’s run to a high level,” he said.
“But this is a different test. He’s going from a straight 1600m to 1500 around a turn.
“He’s never raced around a turn in his life.
“There are a few quandaries, but we’re hoping that his class will shine through.”
One thing Spencer is adamant about is that his talented sprinter will be strong at the finishing post in what is the fourth richest turf race in the world – behind only The Everest, Melbourne Cup and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
“Races are run at a different tempo here. You go fast at the start, ease off and then kick again,” he said.
“His last race in Deauville, every horse in the race was under the pump with 600m to go.
“Very rarely you see a race like that in Australia. So stamina isn’t an issue.”
Ciaron Maher and David Eustace are Light Infantry’s Australian trainers, and Maher – up from Melbourne – also believes Light Infantry will adapt to the Rosehill track.
“Jamie is a world-class rider and he’s got a lot of confidence in him,” Maher said.
“He’s got the right form and you just hope a horse like that gets his opportunity when he wants it in the race.”
Maher said the prizemoney on offer in the Golden Eagle allowed him the opportunity to train a star European sprinter such as Light Infantry, who is based at Newmarket under David Simcock.
“You don’t often see horses of his form come out here. But with the purse of the Eagle it is attracting attention from all over the world, which is great to see,” he said.
“It’s great for Racing NSW and Australia.”
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