Adelaide will make his long awaited return to racing in the 2015 Queen Elizabeth Stakes and Coolmore Australia Racing Manager James Bester is thrilled with the Cox Plate winner heading into the Group 1 event at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
Adelaide has impressed connections with his trackwork heading into the 2015 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Royal Randwick this weekend. Photo by: Race Horse Photos Australia
Adelaide has not been seen at the races since he circled the field to win the Group 1 Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley during the 2014 Spring Racing Carnival in most impressive fashion and there were some question marks over how he had settled into to his new environment with Chris Waller after he was not particularly impressive in barrier trials at Rosehill Gardens on February 17 and Warwick Farm on March 12.
Bester has been confident through Adelaide’s preparations that he would be ready to fire in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) and he told Sky Racing that the Galileo entire has impressed Waller with the way that he has worked ahead of the $4 million event this weekend.
“He is fabulous,” Bester said.
“He put in a piece of work yesterday morning that Chris Waller said was the best he has seen in ages and he has been working with horses like Royal Descent and Catkins that are doing very well at a mile and under.
“For a 2000 metre horse to work with those sort of horses and hold his own is fabulous.
“We felt he went into the Cox Plate without a preparatory run at a lower distance as people tend to do here, so why change a winning formula?
“He will go straight into the Queen Elizabeth and I am delighted with the way that he is working.”
Adelaide has done the majority of his racing on firm surfaces and has not contested a race on a track rated soft or worse since he made his racing debut with a win in Ireland in October of 2013.
Bester said that connections were unlikely to withdraw Adelaide from the 2015 Queen Elizabeth Stakes field, but he admits that a wet track would be a concern for the Galileo entire.
“One caveat is that he does like to hear his feet rattle,” Bester said.
“It is a $4 million race and it is a Group 1 and one would be reluctant not to run him, but he wouldn’t be suited by a soft surface.”
Adelaide is currently available at 2015 Queen Elizabeth Stakes odds of $8.50 with Ladbrokes, while Contributer ($3.60) remains a narrow favourite from To The World ($4), Tosen Stardom ($7.50) and Criterion ($8.50).
