A trip to Australia for the 2015 Melbourne Cup is back on the agenda for Snow Sky after he failed to fire in the Group 1 King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2414m) at Ascot on Saturday.
Snow Sky has form around 2013 Melbourne Cup runner Brown Panther. Photo by: Race Horse Photos Australia
Owner Khalid Abdullah’s Racing Manager Teddy Grimthorpe revealed at the start of the European racing season that Snow Sky was on target to be Juddmonte’s first ever runner in the Melbourne Cup, but their plans changed after the Nayef colt took out the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes (2414m) in dominant fashion during the Royal Ascot Meeting.
Snow Sky was included in the late entries for the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes and he started the race on the second line of betting following the scratching of Golden Horn, but he was never able to get into the race and he finished seven lengths behind Luca Cumani-trained Postponed.
Grimthorpe blamed the wet ground for the disappointing performance of Snow Sky, but in good news for Australian fans he confirmed that the Group 1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) at Flemington on November 3 is now the most likely option for the Group 1 placegetter.
“He didn’t handle the tacky ground and that is probably why he has ran like he has,” Grimthorpe said.
“We need to re-group and have a look at options but the Melbourne Cup is still very much in the mix.
“That was the race we identified for him during the winter and we are still thinking along those lines.”
Snow Sky has been a consistent performer at the highest level of racing since he recorded his first race win at Salisbury in October of 2013 and he won the Group 3 Gordon Stakes (2414m) as a three-year-old before he was placed in both the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes (2414m) at York and the Group 1 Ladbrokes St Leger Stakes (2937m) at Doncaster.
He was sent to Hong Kong for the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase (2400m) at Sha Tin in December and he could finish no better than seventh behind Flintshire, but he returned to winning form when he beat former Melbourne Cup runner Brown Panther in the Group 2 Yorkshire Cup (2816m) at York on May 16 before his Hardwicke Stakes win.
Snow Sky is currently available at 2015 Melbourne Cup odds of $21 with Ladbrokes and is on the equal fourth line of betting along with Godolphin-owned Contributer, last year’s Melbourne Cup winner Protectionist and Darren Weir-trained Signoff.
