3 minute read
Tullys Gold is well positioned to provide trainer Craig Weeding with a second XXXX Gold Gundagai Cup on Sunday.
Weeding captured last year's cup with Prince Of Helena and he will leg aboard Jake Duffy again as he attempts to win the $36,000 feature race.
The 40-year-old's major concern is the weather with further rain, and in particular on Sunday, forecast which will affect the present track of a Soft 7.
"The only negative I have is he isn't at his best on a wet track," the Wangaratta-based trainer suggested.
"He has had three weeks between runs and it's his first time out to 1800 metres, but I think he will run it out strongly.
"I wouldn't normally give too many horses three weeks between starts, but he is very fit and his work has been very good."
Weeding doesn't rate the field as strongly as when he won the Cup last year and feels Tullys Gold is well placed off the back of a solid last start fourth behind Zakeriz in the Albury Mile.
Tullys Gold ($11 on TAB), who formerly raced in South Australia where he won five times, was only beaten one length behind Zakeriz at Albury.
The trainer also believes Tullys Gold is better suited to the NSW way of racing as he tends to lay inwards the reverse way of racing.
"He is much better NSW way of racing and Gundagai should suit him," he suggested. "His only win for me so far was in the Wagga Ted Ryder Cup prelude over 1675 metres when Jake rode him.
"Same race, same trainer and jockey, but a different horse but hopefully the same result."
Imported galloper Skymax will represent former Wagga-based jockey Lauri Parker as he tries to win his first race for the stable. Skymax has been well beaten in most of his recent starts and is first-up off a break.
Favoured candidate Scarlet Prince is deserving of the tag after a last start fourth in the Albury Cup over 2000 metres at his third start back from a spell. Scarlet Prince relishes soft tracks where he has proven to be dominant in four of his five career victories.
In-form mare Milamoo also does her best on wet tracks winning at Canberra and the Sapphire Coast at two of her past three starts. Elveena claimed the Towong Cup two starts ago and since then has finished eighth at Sandown on a good surface.
Three of her five wins have been on rain-affected tracks and she is another of the strong contenders from Wangaratta.
