Big race jockey Glen Boss gave Jabali the thumbs up after the pair combined for a Randwick trial win ahead of Saturday’s Group 2 $300,000 Todman Stakes (1200m) at Rosehill.
Unencumbered will be up against Jabali in the Todman Stakes. Photo by Daniel Costello.
Boss couldn’t fault the Mick Price trained Jabali after the colt was unextended to score a neck win over Commissar and stablemate Cornrow in the 727m barrier trial today as he heads towards the Group 1 $3.5m Tooheys New Golden Slipper (1200m) at Rosehill on April 5.
“He was on the right leg, leaned around the corner and did all the right things. Jabali was very good,” Boss told Racing Network.
“He is a typical Mick Price trained two-year-old. They are just bomb-proof.”
“He was impressive, he was cantering. He looks the same, but he might just have come on mentally.”
Boss will have to hand the Todman Stakes ride back to Damien Oliver who was aboard the Exceed And Excel colt at is last two starts in Melbourne which saw him run second to Rubick in the Group 3 $150,000 Sportingbet Blue Diamond Prelude (C&G) (1100m) at Caulfield on February 8 and second to Earthquake in the Group 1 $1m Sportingbet Blue Diamond Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield on February 22.
Cornrow, also on a Golden Slipper mission, was two and three quarter lengths away third in the trial with Jim Cassidy who will ride the Duporth colt in the Todman Stakes while Boss will be on Price’s other runner Eqdaam.
Eqdaam has only been to the races once for a fifth to Nayeli in the Group 3 $135,000 Mal Seccull Chairman’s Stakes (1100m) at Caulfield on February 1.
Warwick Farm trainer Bjorn Borg will be looking for a better showing from Unencumbered in the Todman Stakes following his last start fifth to Mossfun in the Group 2 $250,000 Silver Slipper Stakes (1100m) at Rosehill on March 1 on a slow track.
Baker said that Unencumbered will strip fitter on Saturday and is keen to get him back on top of the ground so he reproduce the form that saw him win the $2m Magic Millions 2yo Classic (1200m) at the Gold Coast on January 11 on a good track.
“I guessed we learnt a little bit, you don’t know until you try them, and he didn’t go that bad,” Baker told Sky Racing HQ.
“He was up against some good horses and he didn’t have a trial so a lot of them had a fitness edge on him.
“I expect him come Todman Stakes time to be a fair bit sharper, on top of his game and going forward we will be hoping for a good track.”
Trainer Tony McEvoy will be hoping to be in the prizemoney with Risen From Doubt who is currently eighteenth in order of entry for the Golden Slipper while the Gai Waterhouse trained Wandjina at thirty-ninth would have to win to guarantee a start in the world’s richest two year old race.
The Peter Snowden trained filly Earthquake dominates the Golden Slipper market order with Ladbrokes.com.au at $2.75 with the Team Hawkes trained Mossfun the closet in the betting at $8.
Unencumbered is next at $11 in front of Risen From Doubt at $15 and Memorial at $17 while Jabali and Wandjina are both marked as $26 chances.
