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Phillip Stokes believes Shamino’s best form can carry him to victory at Sandown.

Shamino has been a cause of frustration for trainer Phillip Stokes to such an extent the sprinter is prepared from his base in Adelaide. 

The sprinter will be back in Melbourne for the Listed Christmas Stakes (1100m) at Sandown on Monday, looking to make it two wins from his past three starts. 

Stokes said Shamino's best form is good enough to win the Listed race as he is a previous winner of a stakes race, from the chute, at Sandown. 

But Stokes said the horse seems to thrive at his Adelaide base where the gelding spends time at the trainer's farm in the Adelaide Hills. 

"We train this horse from Adelaide because I couldn't get him going," Stokes said. 

"I just threw my hands up. We've got a farm up in the Adelaide Hills, so he spends a lot of his time there. 

"It's refreshed his mind and he's starting to come good." 

Shamino won the Listed Doveton Stakes (1000m) at Sandown in November 2020 before a winless streak of 18 runs that ended with a win at Morphettville in the Listed W H Wylie Stakes (1100m) where he defeated Kemalpasa. 

The sprinter has since finished seventh to Jigsaw, an opponent on Monday, at Cranbourne last month. 

"I thought his run in the Apache Cat the other day at Cranbourne was good as his closing sectionals were quite strong," Stokes said. 

"Jamie Kah rode him to win a stakes race here one day and then he was in the wilderness there for a while. 

"He then he won that stakes race in Adelaide, so his best form is good enough to win this race. 

"He'll be in the second half on Monday, but if they can run on, he'll run a race." 

Shamino is the rank outsider in early betting as a $51 chance in Monday's race that has Godolphin galloper Andermatt as the $2.40 top elect.