3 minute read

What is best for the horse is theory behind Veecee coming back in distance ahead of his tilt at the Blue Diamond Stakes. 

An exciting prospect who scored an impressive debut win at Flemington on January 14, Veecee lines up for his second race appearance on Saturday. 

Veecee heads to the Group 3 Chairman's Stakes (1000m) at Sandown on Saturday, a race that is 100m shorter than his Flemington debut victory. 

It is the timing of Saturday's race that the colt's trainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace believe will give Veecee his best chance of success in the Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) at Sandown on February 25. 

Eustace said the stable felt Saturday's race with a three-week lead-in to the Blue Diamond was a better option than heading to the Group 3 colts and geldings division of the Blue Diamond Prelude (1100m) at Sandown on Saturday week. 

"He's really come on since his debut win," Eustace told RSN. 

"We're really happy with him. He looks great. His work on Saturday was terrific. 

"He'll run on Saturday and then it will be three weeks into the Diamond." 

Eustace said the stable sees no problems with Veecee running out the 1200m of the Blue Diamond despite coming back in trip on Saturday. 

"He'll certainly get the 1200 metres but it's more timing wise as to why he's going on Saturday instead of going two weeks," Eustace said. 

"We wanted that extra week." 

Veecee heads the betting at $2.60 with impressive debut winner Serasana on the next line at $2.80. 

The James Cummings-trained Godolphin entrant Zulfiqar sits at third favourite at $7.50, but he also is an acceptor in the Listed Lonhro Plate (1000m) at Randwick on Saturday. 

Extreme Choice (2016) is the only horse to have won the Chairman's Stakes and Blue Diamond double with the three-week spacing between the races while Road To Success (2000) won both races, however 23 years ago there was only a week between the two races.