Highly rated Western Australian filly Delicacy has overcome a marathon journey to take her place in the Group 1 $400,000 Schweppes Oaks (registered as Australasian Oaks) (2000m) at Morphettville on Saturday.
Fontein Ruby heads the market order for the Australasian Oaks at Morphrettville. Photo by Adrienne Bicknell.
Prominent Perth owner Bob Peters said that it was only a late decision for Delicacy to head to Adelaide for the Autumn Carnival and said the filly had recovered well from her long trip.
“We had to get to Adelaide by flying to Melbourne, then we spent a day in Melbourne. She went on the truck the next night to Adelaide,” Peters told Sky Racing HQ.
“So it was quite an expedition for her.”
“She has eaten up everything we have asked her and worked quite well on Tuesday.”
“You never know though if you go to the well too many times but it is a long time to the breeding barn and a long time until the next sought of Carnival comes around.”
Delicacy has won eight of her twelve starts and showed her quality with wins in the Group 3 $250,000 Reliance Partners W.A. Oaks (2400m) on March 28 and then beat the colts and geldings in the Group 2 $400,000 Schweppes W.A.T.C. Derby (2400m) on April 11, both at Ascot.
Peters said the he originally sent Delicacy to the paddock after her Derby win but after inspecting her a couple of days later decided to head to Adelaide for the Australasian Oaks.
“She done her job and we put her in the paddock. She went out on Monday after the Derby, Tuesday I went down and had a look at her and I went back again Thursday and she was doing that well I said to the farm manager to give her a lunge and she went back into work the next day,” Peters said.
Delicacy has had a relatively light work load on the tracks since she was put back into work with last Tuesday’s gallop her only real serious hit out.
“She has really only had light work up until Tuesday and she has had one gallop,” Peters said.
“She is running into some nice fillies. You have Group 1 fillies in the field, the strongest Australasian Oaks for a long time
Peters said that he was uncertain how the Al Maher filly would handle the trip until she settled into her new surroundings in Adelaide.
“It was a bit of a risk because we really couldn’t find out if she was going to come back up again until we got to Adelaide,” Peter said.
“It’s unchartered waters for us. We have never really had a three year old filly that we’ve made go through what she has had to go through, so it will be very interesting.”
Peters also had to find a new jockey for the Grant Williams trained filly after her Oaks-Derby winning jockey William Pike was injured at the Lark Hill barrier trials on Monday.
Pike injured his shoulder in a barrier accident and could be on the sidelines for some time if surgery is required.
Peters was quick to snap up fellow Perth rider Peter Hall who is no stranger to Delicacy, having ridden her on six occasions for three wins.
Delicacy is well in the betting for the Australasian Oaks and is on the third line of betting at $7.50 with Ladbrokes.com.au.
The Robert Smerdon trained Fontein Ruby heads the market order at $3.60 ahead of Vinery Stud Stakes winner Fenway at $4.60 with the Chris Waller trained Wine Tales the only other runner under double figures at $9.
Australasian Oaks market order at Ladbrokes.com.au: $3.60 Fontein Ruby, $4.60 Fenway, $7.50 Delicacy, $9 Wine Tales, $12 Ungrateful Ellen $13 Cathy’s Mark, $21 Jurasound, Fitocracy, Sea Spray, Kansas Sunflower, Choix De Maia, Bahamas, $26 Redasun, $31 Lady Sharapova, $34 Coachella, $41 Not A Happy Camper, $51 Hipster Girl, Try Your Best, $81 Rather Heroic, $101 Regal Magnus.
