Jockey Michael Rodd didn’t extend unbeaten mare Atlantic Jewel at the Flemington jump outs this morning as she begins her comeback after eighteen months away from the racetrack.
Atlantic Jewel winning the 2011 Thousand Guineas at Caulfield. Photo by Taron Clarke.
Atlantic Jewel was preparing for the Spring last year when she went amiss and trainer Mark Kavannagh was forced to send the Group 1 winning mare back to the paddock.
But after months of rehabilitation, the Melbourne Cup winning trainer has the Fastnet Rock mare back on track for a Spring campaign.
On a heavy surface, Rodd kept Atlantic Jewel well balanced and she finished in fifth spot over 800m, just behind her three quarter sister and Group 1 winner Commanding Jewel, ridden by Damien Oliver.
Long-time Flemington clocker Darryl Sherer said that both mares weren’t knocked about in the testing conditions.
“They just had nice gentle jump-outs. Michael Rodd on Atlantic Jewel and Damien Oliver aboard Commanding Jewel just had hold of them the whole way around,” Sherer told Racenet.
“I was a terrible morning at Flemington and the track was very wet.”
Both mares took out the Group 1 $500,000 Schweppes Thousand Guineas (1600m) at Caulfield in consecutive years, 2011 and 2012, while Atlantic Jewel is also the winner of the 2012 Group 1 $400,000 All Aged Stakes (1400m) at Randwick.
Kavanagh will now monitor Atlantic Jewel’s progress following the jump out and proceed to map out a Spring Carnival program.
Kavanagh has plenty of options for the mare’s comeback run as he heads towards the Group 1 $3m Sportingbet Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley on October 26.
The Group 3 $150,000 W W Cockram Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield on August 17 or the Group 1 $350,000 Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on August 31 are on Kavanagh’s radar.
Kavanagh could also wait until September 7 for the Group 2 $220,000 Let’s Elope Stakes (1400m) at Flemington but he is no hurry to push too hard.
Trainer Leon Corstens has ambitious Spring plans for Commanding Jewel who is also heading towards the Cox Plate.
“I’d like to head for the Cox Plate. We will tread along that path and see how see goes,” Corstens told Racing Ahead.
“We don’t quite know if she will get the mile and a quarter yet, we’ll see how we go.”
