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There will be a sense of déjà vu for Ellsberg’s trainer and jockey when he lines up in the Hawkesbury Guineas.
Five years after combining to clinch the Hawkesbury Guineas with Spill The Beans, jockey Tim Clark and trainer Gerald Ryan will attempt to repeat the feat with a son of the ill-fated stallion.
The pair will link with Ellsberg, who is an even-money favourite with TAB fixed odds to emulate his sire.
Clark had a great association with Spill The Beans, partnering him four times for three wins and he has an even better record on Ellsberg, being undefeated in two rides aboard the three-year-old.
Renowned for his knack at rating frontrunners, Clark can see parallels between Spill The Beans and Ellsberg, who at $280,000 holds the record as the most expensive yearling sold by the stallion.
"They've both got very similar racing patterns," Clark said.
"Spill The Beans went to Hawkesbury and had a wide draw, worked forward, controlled it and was pretty dominant.
"He was a very handy horse and this bloke definitely inherited plenty of his ability."
Like Spill The Beans, Ellsberg is a natural on-speed runner and dominated from the front to put three lengths on his nearest rival when a first-up winner of the South Pacific Classic.
While he was wound up for that assignment, Clark expects Ellsberg to take natural improvement from the run and says the horse's racing pattern will be an advantage around the Hawkesbury circuit.
"Hawkesbury in general, especially when it's dry, will suit on-pacers for sure," Clark said.
"He's got the luxury of having that racing style and it's going to win him more races than he loses. That racing style takes a lot of bad luck out of the equation."
Ellsberg forms part of a handy book for Clark, who also rides the recently gelded Embracer for Tulloch Lodge in the Hawkesbury XXXX Gold Rush (1100m).
Like Ellsberg, Embracer has good gate speed and after partnering him in the first of two recent barrier trials, Clark is expecting a strong performance.
"He showed good improvement from his first to his second trial, so he is well and truly primed for a first-up assignment, although it's a very competitive race," Clark said.
