Trainer Tony McEvoy is confident that his smart filly Roomooz is still on track for a start in the Group 1 $500,000 Thousand Guineas (1600m) at Caulfield on October 14 despite being scratched from Saturday’s Listed $120,000 Mitchelton Atlantic Jewel Stakes (1200m) at The Valley.
McEvoy had no choice but to scratch Roomooz from her weekend assignment after she developed a virus which saw her joints swell but he is certain that she will respond quickly to treatment and line up at Flemington next week.
“If the races were Monday she’d be a certain runner,” McEvoy told racing.com.
“(It’s) bad timing. Her legs are up and she’s a little bit off colour. She’s got a little bug running through her so I’m going to hit it on the head straight away.
“Her legs have blown up this morning so she’s going to need to be treated to get those down and of course I can’t treat her and run her so I’ve elected to treat and not run.
“She’ll run next week at Flemington.”
Roomooz is the winner of two of her four race starts and kicked off her 2017 Spring Carnival in great style with a first up win in a 1200m three year old fillies Plate at The Valley on August 26.
Early betting for the Thousand Guineas at Ladbrokes.com.au has Roomooz marked at $13 behind Lindsay Park’s Blue Diamond Stakes winner Catchy at $8, the Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra trained Booker at $9 and Saturday’s Atlantic Jewel Stakes favourite Shoals at $11.