The first of Perth’s Group I races is still seven weeks away so I’ve identified some fit horses that should be winning sooner rather than later.
SOVEREIGN TRADE
Sure, he only broke his maiden at his sixth attempt on Saturday but the manner of the victory suggests there’s scope to work through the grades. After a moderate first-up effort Sovereign Trade stepped up to the more suitable 1400m trip, relishing a solid tempo up front to unleash a dominant finishing burst from worse than midfield to have a big field covered halfway down the straight. Outside of the sprints his final 600m sectional was the best of the day to add further merit to the victory. Trainer Bernie Miller said after the race there’s "another twenty percent” before he is the full package so there looks to be plenty more to come from Sovereign Trade this time in work. There’s often one or two that start building the picket fence around this time of the season so let’s stick strong with Sovereign Trade in the coming weeks.
Career record (6:1-1-1)
Race to look for – Midweek or Saturday restricted race 1400m and beyond
JUST LIKE FIRE
The racing Gods showed how fickle they can be with the three runners to follow from this column two weeks ago all starting in the market on Saturday and being beaten convincingly, although a closer look at the circumstances surrounding Just Like Fire’s effort suggests we shouldn’t be dropping off now. On face value the Oaks and Derby cheque-earner was disappointing as she struggled into a distant fourth however the race simply wasn’t run to suit. Just Like Fire struggled to keep up in a solidly-run 1400m race where the leader carved out the first 800m in 48 seconds and change, finding herself a long way off the top rounding the turn, yet returned closing sectionals similar to impressive winner Star Value which settled much closer in the run. Surely now it’s time to see Just Like Fire’s staying prowess come to the fore by stepping the mare up to a more suitable journey.
Career record (14:3-0-3)
Race to look for – Benchmark 62+ 1800m on October 21
UNDISCLOSED
At the double-figure odds she looked one of the best roughies on Saturday and supporters would be feeling they left something in the bag after her luckless display. Beaten nine and three lengths, respectively, in her first two starts since resuming, many might have thought the winner of three races hadn’t come up this time in work but with blinkers off and the prospect of being ridden cold in the big field said she was capable of improvement. Indeed, the daughter of Alfred Nobel ended up well back and looking at a wall of horses on the turn, getting badly held up until the 150m mark and rocketing to the line late to finish fourth. She’s a winner at Ascot so there shouldn’t be many concerns about the switch to that track, especially early in the season when the rail is in and making ground from back in the field is possible.
Career record (8:3-0-0)
Race to look for – Benchmark 62+ 1000-1200m
