Widely travelled filly Egg Tart has covered plenty of ‘miles’ in preparation for the Group 1 $500,000 Treasury Brisbane Queensland Oaks (2200m) at Doomben on Saturday.
Egg Tart, above in green and red colours, has covered plenty of miles in preparation for the Queensland Oaks at Doomben. Photo by Jenny Barnes.
Egg Tart has raced in three states, and won, on her way to the Gold Coast where trainer Chris Waller is putting the final touches on her before Saturday’s Group 1 assignment against the fillies.
“She has done a lot of travelling so you factor that into their preparation,” Waller told racing.com.
“She started by going to Flemington with a float trip, racing. Went to Adelaide, raced, back to Flemington, Flemington back to Sydney and then up to the Gold Coast.”
Egg Tart is the winner of five of her seven starts and is undefeated from four runs this preparation that kicked off with a win in a 1300m Fillies and Mares Class 1 on the Beaumont track at Newcastle on March 11.
The Sebring filly then progressed to the city with an impressive mid-week win at Warwick Farm in a 1400m BenchMark 67 Handicap on April 5 before heading to Flemington to record another win in a 1600m 3yo Handicap on April 25.
Waller then stepped Egg Tart up to Group 1 level and she was able to beat the fillies when Kerrin McEvoy weaved his way through the field to claim a photo finish win in the $500,000 Schweppes Oaks (registered as Australasian Oaks) (2000m) at Morphettville on May 6.
Waller is not worried about Egg Tart having a month in between runs and said she has come through her Schweppes Oaks run in great style, arriving on the Gold Coast in terrific order after having a stopover at her home base at Rosehill in Sydney where she ran fifth in a 1030m barrier trial on May 26.
“She had a trial last Friday over a 1000m at Rosehill,” Waller said.
“She looks great and her work has been good and that trial on Friday was certainly her last piece of serious work before the Oaks.”
Egg Tart has had a long tough campaign and Waller has a very high opinion of the filly who has worked her way up through the classes very quickly.
“She is coming through the grades with a rapid rise. The Group 1 race in South Australia is a race that needs to be respected especially with a filly on the way up,” Waller said.
“I am very happy with her. She looks like she has that will to win, very athletic horse.”
“Apart from the Schweppes Oaks she has been winning impressively, but on that occasion it was a good win but she got tangled up in between runners, fortunately she did come through them because that was probably the winning of the race but her other wins have been dominant.”
“So that is what I like to see in a horse.”
Egg Tart is one of seven runners Waller will saddle up in the Queensland Oaks and has drawn barrier ten in the original draw but will move in one space if all three emergencies fail to gain a start when the field is reduced to a final sixteen on Saturday morning and will be ridden again by Kerrin McEvoy who was aboard for her Schweppes Oaks win.
Egg Tart has been installed the $3.30 favourite at Ladbrokes.com.au for the Queensland Oaks that was originally scheduled to be run at its traditional home at Eagle Farm over 2400m but was transferred to Doomben over the shorter distance of 2200m after the Eagle Farm track raced below expectations for the Kingsford-Smith Cup Race Day last Saturday.
