Carbery relies on Girl to conquer Luckygray
Patrick Carbery will ride Balmont Girl in the glamour mare’s quest to stop Luckygray repeating his 2012 double in Saturday week’s $150,000 Belmont Sprint.
Carbery has ridden last season’s WA Oaks in her preliminary work and in a 1000m trial, where she ran second to Luckygray over 1000m at Belmont Park on May 11.
Shaun O’Donnell rode the four-year-old at 20 of her 22 starts and has been on board at all of her five wins, but he will stick to the three times Group 1 winner Luckygray, who brilliantly won the Roma Cup first-up last Saturday.
“Patrick has ridden he at her track work and her trial,” trainer Paula Wagg said. “I’m happy with her and she is on song to go first-up in the Sprint.
“I might trial her on Monday to give her a gallop on the grass because I don’t let her fully extend on the Pro-ride track.
“A gallop on the grass will top her right off.”
Carbery is named to ride Balmont Girl in a 1000m trial at Belmont on Monday.
The Belmont Sprint will be run under weight-for-age conditions for the first time in its history next week.
The wfa conditions suit Luckygray, who is WA’s highest rated galloper on 116.
Luckygray carried the topweight on 61kg when in the 2012 Belmont Sprint when he won the Cup-Sprint double for trainer Gino Poletti.
Luckygray will carry 59kg with Balmont Girl (98) on 57kg in the Sprint.
Trevor Andrews has trained the seven-year-old at his past six starts for wins in the 2013 Railway Stakes and Roma Cup and a second in the 2013 Kingston Town Classic.
Dual Oaks and Derby winner Delicacy returned home yesterday to her home at Yalebra Stud at Keysbrook, following her Group 1 double in South Australia’s Australasian Oaks and SA Derby.
WA handicappers have yet to sit down and assess Delicacy’s rating after her Adelaide romp.
Delicacy started 13 times as a three-year-old for eight wins - her last six in succession - and three placings.
Delicacy is WA’s highest stakes winning three-year-old with earnings of $1,440,120, since Victoria Derby-WATC Derby winner Plastered, who earned $1,453,842 in 2004-05.
Part owner Bob Peters will skip the Victoria spring carnival to concentrate on the $1 million Railway Stakes (1600m) in late November.
“She had virtually no time off as a three-year-old and the Victoria carnival is too close,” Peters said. “She arrived home a bit light from the float trip but she has come through it all well.
“Whether she comes up again is a big question and we will have to see.”
Peters previous three Derby winners Dreamaway (2011), Mystic Prince (2013) and Respondent (2014) failed to win a race after their WATC Derby wins.
Mystic Prince is catalogued to be sold at next month’s Perth winter sale at Belmont.
