Connections are hoping that Sweet Idea’s class will help her get the distance as she tackles the 1400m for the first time in the $1m Magic Millions 3yo Guineas at the Gold Coast on Saturday.
Sweet Idea is stepping up to 1400m for the first time in Magic Millions 3yo Guineas. Photo by Steve Hart.
The Gai Waterhouse trained filly is coming off a gutsy win over Peter Moody’s colt Weinholt in the $100,000 Wyong Magic Millions 3yo Stakes (1200m) at Wyong on December 19 and part owner Luke Henderson says that was a good pointer heading towards the Gold Coast.
“Obviously she’s never been to 1400m, so we just don’t know, but she’s the classiest horse in the race,” Henderson told The Courier-Mail.
“I did take a lot of confidence out of Wyong, where she did a heap of work, looked beaten in the straight, but came again to win.”
“If this was a 1200m race, she would be near enough to a certainty.”
James McDonald, who was successful on Sweet Idea at Wyong, has retained the ride after stable jockey Tommy Berry elected to ride Waterhouse’s other runner Northern Glory.
McDonald was aboard Sweet Idea when she ran a narrow second to Real Surreal in last year’s $2m Jeep Magic Millions 2yo Classic (1200m) but Jim Cassidy rode the Snitzel filly when third to stablemate Overreach in the 2013 Group 1 $3.5m Tooheys New Golden Slipper (1200m) at Rosehill in the Autumn.
Even though Henderson narrowly missed out on winning the Magic Millions 2yo Classic and the Golden Slipper, he also shares in the ownership of Fiorente and was able to taste big race success when the import won last year’s Group 1 $6m Emirates Melbourne Cup (3200m) at Flemington on November 5.
Sweet Idea heads the market order for the Magic Millions 3yo Guineas at $4.40 ahead of the Jason McLachlan trained filly Enquare who is going for her fifth straight win.
Sydney colt Charlie Boy is on the third line of betting at $7 with second emergency Shiraz Attack marked as $8 chance just ahead of Salute To Jude, Gundy Spirit and Northern Glory all on $8.50 with Weinholt marked as $11 chance.
