Gai Waterhouse-trained colt Whittington will make his first appearances at the races since the Group 1 Golden Slipper (1200m) when he contests the Group 3 San Domenico Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday.
Whittington will face a strong field in the San Domenico Stakes at Rosehil0l on Saturday. Photo by: Steve Hart
Whittington is coming off a successful juvenile campaign where he recorded impressive victories in the Listed Breeders Plate (1000m) at Randwick and the Lonhro Plate (1100m) at Warwick Farm but was slightly outclassed when finishing thirteenth behind stablemate Overreach in the Group 1 Golden Slipper (1200m) at Rosehill.
The son of Tale Of The Cat has impressed with two strong barrier trials performances at Randwick in the lead-up to his resumption and Waterhouse will apply blinkers to sharpen the three-year-old up for his first-up effort.
The 2013 San Domenico Stakes betting market is a race in two at the moment with Whittington and Sidestep the standouts.
Sidestep will also be making his racing debut as a three-year-old after an impressive 2013 Autumn Racing Carnival campaign that was highlighted by a strong victory in the Group 2 Pago Pago Stakes (1200m) and a second place finish in the Golden Slipper.
Trainer Peter Snowden has big plans for the Exceed And Excel colt during the 2013 Spring Racing Carnival and he has been nominated for both the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) and the Group 1 Cox Plate (2040m).
Sidestep won’t be the only Darley representative in the San Domenico Stakes with Kuroshio also set to take part.
The three-year-old recorded an impressive win in the Group 3 Blue Diamond Prelude (1100m) at Caulfield in February but was disappointing in both the Group 2 Silver Slipper Stakes (1200m) and the Golden Slipper.
Other interesting runners include Queensland-based Whiskey Allround, Bjorn Baker-trained Windjammer, lightly-raced Cluster and Canonbury Stakes winner Never Can Tell.
The San Domenico Stakes has proven an excellent form race in recent years with Foxwedge (2011) and Snitzerland (2012) both going on to achieve impressive results after winning the race.
