We nominated Berkeley Square as a leading contender for the Caulfield Guineas and Victoria Derby early on and have no reason to change our mind after the son of Territories (IRE) opened his stakes account in Saturday’s Listed Exford Plate (1400m) at Flemington.
Caught in traffic near the tail of the field with 200m to run, Craig Williams had to thread the needle on Berkeley Square, who savaged the line in defeating the last start Listed winner Fast Witness (Star Witness) by a long-head.
Listed stakes-winner Tijuana (American Pharoah) was a short-head back in third.
Trained Dan O’Sullivan said Berkeley Square needed to be a good horse given his chequered run.
“I was hoping there were no cameras on me,” he said.
It was a little bit of a horror watch halfway up the straight. We are all experts from up here - do you go in, do you go out, what do you do - but he trusted the horse.
“He’s the real deal this horse. He’s got a really good motor to be able to get out of that trouble. He’s a big-striding horse, so it’s not easy for him to change gears like that.
“I always thought if he gets clear air, he’ll be right because he’s got a big finish on him.
“He was impressive the other day, but just the things I’ve seen him do when you ride him off in trackwork and the way he can motor home, he chases them down, which is the sign of a good horse.
“They’re a good quality lot here, and without watching the race to see if anyone else was unlucky, not many would have been more unlucky than him if he had been beaten.
“If they’re the crop that we’ve got to take on in the Guineas that’s the way we’ll be going, but whether we have one more race before that we’ll see.”
From his sire’s second crop of 46 live foals, Berkeley Square made a winning debut at Geelong in March before a luckless second to the promising Boogie Dancer (Sooboog) in the VOBIS Gold Ingot at Caulfield.
A homebred for David Peacock and partners, Berkeley Square is a half-brother to Group III ATC Frank Packer Plate winner and Group 1 BTC Queensland Derby runner-up Senor Toba (Toronado), out of the Teofilo (IRE) mare Bahamas.
Placed in the SAJC Schweppes Oaks and Group III South Australia Fillies Classic, Bahamas is a half-sister to Group II VRC Matriarch Stakes winner and Group 1 SAJC Australasian Oaks third Affair To Remember (Toronado) and stakes-placed Exodus (Bernardini).
Bahamas has a 2yo filly by Frosted (USA) named Another You and a weanling colt by Harry Angel (IRE).
The daughter of Teofilo (IRE) was covered by Blue Point (IRE) last spring.
Berkeley Square is the eighth stakes winner and first in Australia for Godolphin’s Group 1 Prix Jean Prat winner Territories (IRE), who shuttled for five seasons.
