Goldstream will contest the 2015 Secretariat Stakes in the United States next weekend and Australian Bloodstock Director Jamie Lovett is hopeful that the Italian Derby winner can earn an invitation to the 2015 Cox Plate if he performs well in the Group 1 event.
Brenton Avdulla has been booked to ride Goldstream in the Secretariat Stakes in the United States. Photo by: Daniel Costello
Goldstream was purchased by Australian Bloodstock after he recorded an impressive win in the Group 2 Italian Derby (2213m) at Rome in May and he was transferred to the stable of Melbourne Cup winning trainer Andreas Wohler where he has been in work for eight weeks.
Lovett told Sky Racing HQ that Wohler was happy with Goldstream and he said that the entire Australian Bloodstock team were very excited to be heading to the United States for the Secretariat Stakes.
“It is exciting for our connections and everybody is looking forward to getting up to Chicago next week,” Lovett said
“Obviously it will gives us a fair indication as to where he fits as far as a possible spring campaign goes later in the year.
“He has been in Germany now for seven or eight weeks, so he has had a good part of his preparation.
“He had a fair bit of residual fitness coming off that Derby and it is just a case of Andreas getting a feel from him.
“It has only been in the last ten or 12 days that he has really confirmed that he is happy to take the horse up there and take that invitation at Arlington.
“Andreas has travelled up into the States on numerous occasions with success and he knows the right horses for there.
“He feels quite confident that he will hold himself in good stead once he gets up there.”
The 2014 edition of the Secretariat Stakes was won by Adelaide before he came to Australia to take out the Cox Plate and Lovett is hopeful that Goldstream can follow a similar path in 2015.
Lovett revealed that it would not be the end of the world if Goldstream was not able to race at the highest level of racing during the 2015 Spring Racing Carnival, but ideally the Martiono Alonso colt would defend his unbeaten record in the Secretariat Stakes and give Australian Bloodstock a representative in the Australasian Weight-For-Age Championship.
“He is a three-year-old Northern Hem and they have to be a pretty special horse to come out here and compete at weight-for-age because they don’t get the three-year-old weight advantage,” Lovett said.
“It is certainly an option, but it wouldn’t be the end of the world.
“He is a very good horse and we are very comfortable with where he is at and the way Andreas is talking, he is very happy with him.
“In the perfect world he will race well and we would love an invitation to the Cox Plate and if he puts his best foot forward in the Secretariat Stakes he puts himself in the line for that sort of opportunity to come to Australia.”
Goldstream is currently available at 2015 Cox Plate odds of $21 with Ladbrokes, while Arod ($9) is a narrow favourite from Contributer ($10), Criterion ($12) and Hartnell ($14).
